Changes
by Unobtainable
Summary: Brooke Fox is charming, beautiful, funny, and outgoing- at least on the outside. Will Mark Calaway aka The Undertaker be able to dig deep enough to figure out this lost soul before its too late? Her secrets may be too much for his heart to handle.
1. Chapter 1 :: Hell Every Where

**_Changes_** ::

**Author's Note: **_Hey guys! This is my first fanfiction based on the Undertaker. It is completed- however I'll only be posting a couple of chapters at a time to see what kind of feedback I can get. Please feel free to send me your reviews and feedback! They're greatly appreciated. Hope you enjoy =]_

Chapter One

"Brooke Fox. That seems to be quite an appropriate name for someone as beautiful as yourself. What nationality are you, exactly?" The stranger said as he flipped through her book of pictures. Brooke studied his facial expressions as he looked at each photograph. "Well I'm actually half Columbian and Brazilian. With a little bit of Polish, sir." He looked up and studied her features in person. "Sounds rather exotic, aside from the minor Polish inconvenience" the man stated with a smug look. Brooke sighed and avoided eye contact as he continued to flip through the pictures. She jumped as he slammed the book close and slid it back to her from across the desk. "Look," he said seriously. 'Well here it comes again' Brooke thought to herself.

"You have potential. You're tall, tan, and you have an exotic beauty that is hard to find these days. But looking at you- you lack confidence. Your strut on the catwalk is so bland and boring. Agents won't book you if you're as stiff as a board Brooke." Brooke's eyes shimmered, close to tears, as she looked down at her book sitting closed once again on her lap. The man sighed. "This is what I'm talking about, honey. Now usually I don't sit here and console aspiring models. I ain't no doctor Phil. But might I suggest you even considering some therapy? Just to help boost your confidence? You need confidence in this business, or they are going to tear you apart out there." Brooke looked up and smiled. "Thank you sir." She grabbed her purse and stood up quickly, as she practically sprinted out the doorway.

'Another one bites the dust.' She thought to herself as she made her way through the crowded parking lot. Sure, she's never been overly confident in herself. Then again, who really is one hundred percent? She never realized just how difficult the modeling industry would be. People had always told her she'd be perfect for it. She had always been on the taller side. In fact in high school her friends would tease her about being a so called "Neanderthal". She had natural dark skin, most likely due to her heritage. As a matter of fact, most of her attributes were dark. She had long jet black hair, and dark brown eyes to match. She never colored her hair, aside from the failed attempt in high school to lighten it to a chocolate brown. She had bought a box of hair dye and it did virtually nothing to her dark locks.

Brooke no longer had any family. Aside from her older brother, Kevin, who was enough of an over-bearing parent for her to handle as it was. She never knew her father. After she was born the financial strain of not one, but two children took too much of a tole on him. He left his pregnant girlfriend and never looked back, leaving Brooke's mother to fend for herself with an eight year old and a new born. Brooke shakes her head in disgust at the thought. Because of it, Kevin was forced to grow up- and fast. He was always more of a parent to her then her mother had ever been. In some senses she can't blame her mother for the stress she endured. It was a life of torment, and for lack of better words, it was absolute hell. Eventually the stress had eaten her mother to the core. She put a revolver to her head and pulled the trigger when Brooke was thirteen.

Brooke had tried to be normal her whole life. She suppressed all her hidden fears and memories of that day. She had even straight up tried to forget her mother even existed. She resented her in a way, leaving her two children behind like a coward. Clearly this woman was thinking about no one but herself when she picked up that gun. As Brooke grew older she found that she was more frightened of life then she was of death. But hell, why complain? Over all she had a fantastic life. Wonderful friends who helped her through it all, and Kevin to console in.

She got to her car and sped off towards the highway as she dialed Stephanie's number. Stephanie has been a good friend of hers for years. She also so happened to be the daughter of the infamous Vince McMahon, the chairman of World Wrestling Entertainment. Brooke knew the family fairly well, even though they were constantly on the road traveling. Stephanie had recently joined them on tour. She always had an interest in the family business and decided that now was the time to get involved. After all, she had nothing tying her down. No children, and no man. The WWE had an event in her home town of Houston that day, so Brooke was looking forward to reuniting with her friend for the first time in weeks.

"How did it go?" Brooke hears on the other end of her cell phone. "Is that what our conversations have come to? Not even a hello? How was your day? We're just getting straight to the point here, huh?" Brooke asks with a chuckle in her voice. Stephanie sighs through the phone, "Is there a particular reason you're avoiding the subject?" she asks. Brooke nods in agreement, knowing Stephanie can't see her disappointed facial expression. "Isn't there always?" Stephanie chuckles again, "You made your point. Come to the arena. Bring your backstage pass because security is now at full force since the wrestlers have started arriving. We'll go grab some lunch if you're interested?"

"Fantastic. My stomach has been conversing with me for hours. I didn't eat or drink at all this morning because I had that appointment- but fuck it. Now I'm ready for a burger. See you in five." Brooke said as she flipped her phone shut. She dodged traffic and made it to the arena shortly after her conversation with Stephanie. She knew the drill with the backstage passes. She's been to a couple of wrestling shows, even met a few athletes here and there, but every time the energy in the building was electric. These men and women truly loved what they did. They woke up sore every morning, and probably will for the rest of their lives. Yet still, day in and day out, they are lacing up their boots to entertain the fans. Brooke admired that every time she stepped into the arena. She hoped one day, she could find something that she felt as passionate about.


	2. Chapter 2 :: Your Dirty Looks

Chapter Two.

Brooke met Stephanie at the small café in the arena. The two laughed as they ran up to each other embracing in a hug that felt long overdue. They sat down and ordered lunch from the pushy waitress who seemed to be taking care of each table in the dining room. "I sympathize with her," Brooke stated sipping her water."I waitressed for years, they say that it is one of the most stressful jobs out there, you know." Stephanie glanced at her with one eyebrow raised. "Clearly you've never worked for this insane company! My dad is driving me up the god-damned wall. I think we've been spending a bit too much time together." Brooke shot her friend a dirty look, "Yes I can imagine that traveling across the country in luxury with buff sexy wrestlers all the time can get rather stressful. What does it take to get your whiny ass laid around here anyway? You need it." Stephanie stared at Brooke with a huge smile on her face.

Brooke tipped her head in response, "What are you staring at me with that shit eating grin all over your face for?" Stephanie giggled, "No particular reason aside from maybe… well, let's just say this whiny bitch was getting herself a nice piece of ass. Thank you very much." Brooke's eyes widened, "Are you shitting me? Who?" Stephanie looked around the café to make sure no one was around. She leaned forward and quietly whispered, "Paul Levesque. But you have to keep your loud mouth quiet about it." Brooke looked confused, "Steph, who the hell am I going to tell? I don't even know who the fuck that is." Stephanie laughed in response, "It's Triple H. Have you been living under a damn rock? You've met him before." Brooke looks up, with her finger under her chin sarcastically stroking it as if she were in deep thought. "Doesn't ring a bell, sorry. But good for you- skank." The girls laughed and caught up for an hour or two over lunch. As soon as they were done eating, Brooke tipped her waitress heavily, as she always did once being a server herself, and followed Stephanie to the backstage area.

As the two were walking, Brooke found herself stopping dead in her tracks- only to look over at one of the most gorgeous men she had laid eyes on in a while. Being a model, it was surprising to most people that Brooke wasn't attracted to the Abercrombie and Fitch type. She liked them a little more mysterious then that, with a little more edge. She had given those model folk a chance however, maybe even two chances. But to Brooke, they were all just little boys- not men. She liked to figure people out, like it were a game. She also liked to watch other people try to figure her out. She found that most male models were not only into her looks, but more so, into their own.

As they passed, the man looked up and caught Brooke's eyes. This is what she was talking about. Tattoo covered arms, tall, gorgeous green eyes, looked like her could easily bench press her over his head- that was always her type of man. Stephanie looked back with a grin. "That's the Undertaker, honey. You sure you want to mess around with the dead man?" Brooke ignored Stephanie and continued to stare- and it was quite obvious to this mystery man that she was not planning on breaking her gaze any time soon. He chuckled at her, turned, and smoothly walked away.

Brooke thought about this Undertaker character on and off for the remainder of the day. She had seen him before, who hasn't? But very few people have seen him the way she had just hours ago. Those green eyes were almost hypnotizing. Brooke left Stephanie's locker room to use the public restroom in the arena. Stephanie had been taking up her bathroom with no mercy for hours prepping for the show- and Brooke was about ready to burst. She ran down the hall looking for any sign that had something to do with a restroom. When she finally found it, she sighed with relief knowing she'd have a hell of a time getting back to Stephanie's dressing room. She was right about that. She had wondered pretty far and it was damn easy to get lost in those huge backstage areas.

She walked around for a few minutes, clearly looking like a lost puppy. As she stopped to study the hallways in front of her and silently debated which one to go down, a pair of hands tapped her on her shoulders. Brooke jumped a bit at the sudden feel of massive hands on her back. She turned around only to see the green eyes she'd been thinking about for hours. "Did you like what you saw?" He asked as he looked down at this strange exotic beauty. Brooke could do nothing but grin. "I'm Mark. Mark Calaway. And you are?" he asked as he extended one of his massive hands to shake. Brooke folded her small hand into his, "I'm Brooke… Fox." Mark grinned. "Fox? I like that… suits you well." Brooke smiled, same old response every time. "Now call me crazy, but I don't think that I've seen you around here before. And I could have sworn that I saw you admiring my good looks from a far earlier today." He said with a chuckle. Brooke's smile grew wider, "Is that so? Well I could have sworn that it was the other way around Mr. Calaway. I was simply giving you a dirty look for eyeballing me."

"Well, in that case I like your dirty looks." Mark's eyes widened as he looked at the girl. She was a fox alright. Her gorgeous bronze skin and dark hair and eyes. This woman simply oozed sex appeal. The physical attraction between the two of them was instant, and they could both feel the tension. Brooke stepped back a bit and took a deep breath, she felt like she'd been holding it since the moment he touched her. "So, you didn't really answer me there foxy. What are you doing here? You need to be directed to the lost-and-found?" Brooke chuckled, "Actually, can you get on one of those mega speakers that go through out the arena and page someone for me?" she joked. Mark smiled, "I'll see what I can do."

The two turn around when they hear a female voice calling in their direction from down the hall. "Brooke!" Stephanie shouts when she finally locates her long lost friend. "There you are, jeeze did you fall in or take a dump in there?" Brooke blushed, looking mortified. "Actually I got lost and Mark here was helping me out." Stephanie nodded and looked up at the man. "Well thank you, Mark. She's slightly retarded and I appreciate you being kind to her." Brooke's mouth shot open, "Excuse me?" Stephanie smiled and grabbed her friend's arm, pulling her along down the hallway. "Next time, pay attention to where you're going and I won't have to resort to this. You know how dangerous the backstage area could be. You're lucky Mark is a gentleman, you could have run into some creep back here!" Stephanie continued to scold Brooke as they walked down the hall. Mark watched after them and chuckled to himself, "Women," he thought as he headed back to his dressing room to prepare for the show.


	3. Chapter 3 :: The Deadman

Chapter Three

Whenever Brooke would visit the arena, she was able to sit in the private section to watch the show. That way, when Stephanie wasn't performing, she could easily join Brooke for a drink or two. Brooke always loved coming to the events. She knew just how lucky she was being treated VIP at these shows. So many fans would love to be sitting where she was, conversing with the stars. Stephanie had an hour or so before she had to make an appearance, so she decided to join her best friend for a few minutes. As the two watched on, the lights suddenly dimmed and the infamous Undertaker music began. Brooke watched in awe as the crowd reacted ecstatically to this large man dressed in black. His presence was so electric that she felt as if she might have heart failure just looking at him. The way he performed in the ring was nothing short of phenomenal. This man knew what he was doing, and he quite obviously loved doing it.

Brooke admired his passion, and of course his good looks from above. Stephanie glanced over at her friend and chuckled, "You got a little… dried drool right there," she joked as she playfully wiped her friend's mouth. Brooke laughed, "I can't help it, I like what I see." She didn't have to tell Stephanie twice. "You know, Mark is really good friends with Paul, the guy I've been seeing. I should talk to him- maybe I can arrange a double date of some sort." Brooke turned her attention to her friend, "Are you saying I need help with dating?" Stephanie smiled and nodded, "Kind of."

"Message received." Brooke said and smiled. "Well thank you Steph, but really, don't bother. Something like this would never work. You travel with the guys, and I don't have that kind of time. The idea of a long distance relationship doesn't appeal to me an-" Stephanie cut her friend off, "Whoa whoa whoa! You're getting too ahead of yourself there missy. I never said it would blossom into a beautiful relationship. Just maybe a blissful night of fun, if you know what I mean," she said with a wink. Brooke laughed, "Thanks, but no thanks." Stephanie just rolled her eyes. "Alright, I'll stay out of it. But I have to go, my segment is coming up. I'll see you after the show." Stephanie got up and gave her friend a playful kiss on the lips as she scampered out of the area.

Once the show was through, Brooke managed to find her way back to Stephanie's dressing room. After discussing the nights plans, the two pack up and head off towards the parking garage. "Brooke! Steph!" they hear calling behind them. The two women turn around to see none other than Mark and Paul calling after them. Stephanie shot her friend a grin as they both stopped and waited for the two men to catch up. "Well hello ladies. Just where do you think you're running off to?" Paul said with a grin. Stephanie smiled, "Nowhere in particular. But since you're here, this may be as good a time as ever. Paul, this is my best friend, Brooke. Brooke, Paul." The two shook hands and exchanged 'nice to meet you'. Brooke looked over at Mark, who was now giving her a taste of her own medicine with the staring game. She squinted her eyes at him and smiled. Mark thought this woman could easily be one of the most beautiful he'd ever laid his eyes on. He didn't understand why just yet, but he needed to know more about her. He needed to touch her again.

As Stephanie and Paul talked amongst themselves, Mark continued his staring contest with Brooke. "Am I making you feel uncomfortable yet?" he stated smiling. Brooke could feel her skin turning red at his gaze. "So how long will you be in Houston for?" he asked. It was difficult for her to concentrate on anything but those gorgeous green eyes staring into hers. "Well, I actually live in Houston. I just moved here about a year ago from Buffalo, New York." Mark raised his eyebrows and nodded, "Buffalo huh? That's a far move. And quite a difference in weather. Every time I've been to Buffalo I've been in the midst of a snow storm." Brooke smiled, "That's what we're known for." Mark grinned at the girl. "So you're relatively new to Houston then? I've been living here for about seven years now, but I've always been a Texas native." Brooke's eyes shot up at him. He lives here?

Stephanie cleared her voice and the two looked over at her. "Brooke, you ready to go?" she asked. Brooke nodded and looked back at Mark. "Well, if it's okay with you, I'd love to take you out one night. If you're interested?" he asked with a smile in his eyes. Brooke nodded once more, "I'd like that". All she could do is smile at him. After a quick phone number exchange, they were off their separate ways.


	4. Chapter 4 :: Feels Right?

Chapter Four

"I'm so nervous my stomach feels sick." It had been only two days since Brooke met Mark, and he had already called her and they planned their first dinner date. It's been months since Brooke had been on a date, and none of the men she'd gone out with had made her feel so jittery. Stephanie smiled at her friend. They were still in town from the previous event, and were planning to hit the road tomorrow night for the next arena. "You'll be fine. You look gorgeous." Brooke finally turned around after staring in the mirror for what seemed like hours. "Are you sure I don't look too underdressed? I have no idea where we're even going." Brooke wore a pair of dress white shorts and a half sleeve black shirt. Her long jet black hair was slightly curled and fell perfectly over her shoulders. She wore a pair of black high heels to match, and also to feel a bit taller compared to the large man she was going out with.

"You look great, stop worrying. Obviously Mark saw something in you and wants to know more. Just relax and go with it." Brooke smiled and nodded. She was right. And she certainly wanted to know more about this mysterious stranger. He sent her a text message which simply read "On my way". She felt a chill just seeing his name on her phone. 'What the hell is wrong with me?' she asked herself. 'Chill out, it's just dinner'. Her jitters quickly vanished upon looking at him.

He stepped out of his black, four door pick-up truck and walked to her door where she was already standing. He stopped and stared at her, "You look beautiful. You ready?" Brooke grinned at him, "You clean up pretty well yourself there handsome." Mark couldn't help but chuckle. It was very rare that he was the one getting the compliments. He was quite use to constantly dishing them out to boost a woman's confidence, but Brooke looked damn sexy- and he knew that she knew it. It was a nice change of pace from him.

"I hope you like Italian food. There is this great Italian place called Chef's downtown. Ever been there?" Brooke looked at the scenery as they drove along the highway. "No I've never been. But I'll take your word on it." Mark glanced over at her, "Now you must have a bit of Italian heritage in you? Am I right? I mean with the dark features I'm just guessing." Brooke smiled at him, "That's a common misconception of me. There is no Italian blood flowing in these veins, honey." Mark cocked an eyebrow at her, "Oh really? What is your nationality then?" She turned her attention from the road to his eyes, was she really going on a date with The Undertaker? "I'm Columbian and Brazilian, with a hint of Polish." Mark laughed, "Interesting the way you put it. Sounds like a nice receipt."

"What about you?" she asked. "I too have a hint of polish. But I'm mostly Irish. In case you couldn't tell by the freckles, my hair is naturally red- I dye it black due to my character." Brooke leaned closer and studied his features. Mark's eyes widened and he glanced over at her, "You really do have a staring problem, don't you sweetheart?" Brooke giggled, "Don't be nervous, I'm just checking out the freckles" she said pinching his cheeks.

When the two finally arrived, Mark couldn't have acted like more of a gentleman. He opened doors for her, pulled out her chair, looked into her eyes. This man was not as scary as his character proclaimed him- infact, he was a big teddy bear. She laughed to herself thinking of the comparison. Kids these days grow up frightened of this man in black. It was interesting for her to see his true character, not just a man hiding behind some leather and a top hat.

"So I have to ask," Brooke begins as she takes a sip of her beer. "Two things actually. One, how does someone as easy going and sweet as you play such a badass dark character? And two, how does someone as easy going and sweet as you remain single?" Mark laughed, "Believe it or not, the Undertaker was the brain child of Vince McMahon. He actually ran the idea by me and let me take over the concept. The darkness of the character was always something that has deep down been a part of me. I've always been fascinated with death, and an afterlife. As far as the me being single part, I just recently finalized my divorce even though we've been separated for two years. I'm working on it." He stated with a smile. "How old are you, Brooke?"

"I'm twenty-five. How old are you?" she asked grinning at him. He tipped his head at her, "What? Do I look like an old man to you girl? I've got a couple years on you but nothing to outlandish. I'm thirty-six." Brooke smiled at him, "God you know, I think that they actually made this movie about you and you almost fit the description. It was called Fourty Year Old Virgin or something along those lines? Four more years and you qualify." Mark sarcastically slammed his beer on the table. "You know what? I may be an old, single, lonely man- but I'm not a damn virgin. Trust me on that one." he said with a wink. She could sense that Mark was enjoying joking around with her, but silently felt insecure about his new-found freedom.

"So you're from Buffalo? What made you decide to move so far down south? You have any family down here or something?" Brooke sarcastically chuckled and smiled at him, "Funny thing is my only family lives in Buffalo. I don't know- I just had to get out of there. I needed a change of scenery, you know? I've been trying for years to move forward in my life and flush out all the bad vibes. But unfortunately Buffalo just reminded me every day of the bad- so I had to get out. Stephanie lives not too far, so I figured this would be a good place for a new beginning." Mark smiled at her. She truly had an old soul and was wise above her years. He wanted to learn more, to figure her out. He'd save it for another day however, too much digging on the first date may scare her away.

After a couple of drinks and close to some of the best Italian cuisine that Brooke had ever tasted, the two were off. During dinner Mark had mentioned his motorcycles to her and he noticed how her eyes lit up. She had never been on one before, however Brooke was always an adrenaline junkie and loved to try new things. He suggested that the two drive back to his house, and he'd drop her off at home on a motorcycle.

"Okay, don't laugh if I'm squeezing you too hard now Mark, this is my first time be gentle." Brooke said as she put her long hair into a ponytail. Mark was already sitting patiently on the bike waiting for her to hop on. He watched in amusement as she slowly, and carefully, made herself comfortable behind him. She fastened her arms around him and tightened her grip as the Harley road off onto the streets. Mark had always loved riding and the freedom he felt from doing so. Whenever he had any stresses in life, he'd simply hop on his bike, and ride them away. Mark smiled as he heard Brooke laughing behind him. It was nice to share one of his passions with someone, and even better when they enjoyed it.

After ten minutes, they arrived at Brooke's home. "That was a thrill. I loved it!" she exclaimed with a smile as she hopped off the bike. Mark grinned at her; she was beautiful, windblown hair and all. The thing he admired most is that she didn't even care. 'A model that doesn't worry about her appearance, odd' he thought. He got off his bike and walked her to the door, the date couldn't have been much more perfect. "So, I'd hope that I'll be seeing you again- soon." Mark said as they approached her porch. "We're leaving tomorrow night, I'll be out of town for two days. But I'd love to see you again when I get home." Brooke smiled as she looked into his eyes. She wrapped her arms around him and embraced him in a hug. "Without question." She whispered into his neck. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and turned to go inside. As she turned her back, she felt a massive hand grab her arm and whirl her around. Before she knew it his lips were on hers, the feeling of his warm mouth and hot breath was almost too much for her to handle. She pulled back and stared at him, stunned. "Brooke, I'm sorry- I didn't mean to do that I jus-"

"Stop", Brooke said, cutting him off. She put her finger over his lips and smiled up at him. "I liked it." She then turned and made her way into the house for good, closing the door tightly behind her. God damn, what a night.


	5. Chapter 5 :: Too Much, Too Soon

Chapter Five

It was hard for Brooke to think about anything else. She had replayed Mark's lips on hers over and over in her head for days. But who was she kidding? Something like this would never work out. Sure, they had chemistry- and the date was nothing short of perfect. But Mark was already back on the road and wouldn't be home for another week. She didn't think that she had what it took to be with a man who was constantly away. Brooke had abandonment issues, and for obvious reasons.

The two would occasionally send each other random text messages throughout the on coming days. Even though Mark felt he was "too old", as he told Brooke, for text messaging- it was hard for him to be on the phone due to his busy schedule. He found that texting was rather convenient, and he enjoyed talking to Brooke here and there when he could.

Brooke was focused on her career. She booked a couple of fashion shoots and a runway show for the upcoming month. She was beginning to learn the business, slowly but surely. If one agent doesn't like her hair or her look, another one thinks it's perfect. It was rather amusing to her- but she found that the modeling industry was really all about your individuality. Her schedule was becoming frantic, and so was Mark's. Brooke knew deep down that no matter how much she admired him, the chances of them ever working as a couple was slim. As of now, she was more interested a friendship, and simply nothing more.

"I'd really like to see you again", Brooke read on her phone after she got done with her fashion shoot. She smiled when she saw Mark's name above the text. "We will, when are you coming home?" she sent back. She flipped her phone shut and began packing up her belongings. She headed out to the parking lot when she heard her phone beep. It was Mark again, "Three days. Austin on Friday for a show, then a three day break." Brooke grinned. Even though she shouldn't get her hopes up, she couldn't wait to see those green eyes again.

"Hey baby girl," Stephanie said through the phone. "Hey! How's it going out in California?" Brooke asked her friend as she did some cleaning around the house. "It's great. Too damn hot though. You'd be surprised what a little humidity can do, I'd much prefer the dry Texas heat. Speaking of Texas missy, can you come out to Austin this Friday for our next show?" Brooke sighed, "I don't know Hun. I've been swamped with work the past few days and I'm exhausted. Plus on Sunday I have a huge fashion show and I shouldn't be traveling just days before." She could hear Stephanie whimpering on the other end, "Please, please, please?" Brooke just laughed, "You are like a five year old."

"Come on, we're having a hotel party after the show and I want my best friend to be there! You'll get to meet some of the wrestlers, not to mention Mark will be there." Brooke chuckled, "Is that suppose to persuade me?" she asked. Stephanie smiled to herself, not saying a word. "Apparently so," Brooke said, answering her own question. "Just come. I promise it will be worth your while." Brooke took a deep breath and sighed once more, "You win. See you in Austin."

The next morning, Brooke began packing her belongings and getting ready to leave tomorrow morning. She had sent Mark a text message telling him she'd be coming to Austin, and he never responded. She wondered if it was too soon to just show up at a party with his fellow co-workers. Even though Stephanie was her close friend, and she knew the McMahon family well, she was stepping on to his turf. Was it just too much for him?

Brooke woke up early for the three hour drive from Houston to Austin, Texas. 'This was Mark's home town', she thought as she saw the sign that read "Welcome To Austin". Brooke arrived at the arena and was greeted backstage by Stephanie. The night went accordingly, and the wrestlers put on another fantastic show. It had been a while since Brooke was in Austin, three years to be exact. It was a beautiful city, surrounded by lakes and lit up like the stars at night. Stephanie and Paul met Brooke at her hotel room a few hours after the show. The group was going down to the hotel bar, which was closed off and strictly for the entertainers only. She smiled as she watched Stephanie and Paul together. The two were really getting serious with their relationship, and she wondered how Stephanie's father would react if he knew just how real the feelings were becoming.

Brooke finished getting ready in her bathroom and joined the two for a pre-party drink. She was nervous about running into Mark. He never responded to her when she told him she'd be in Austin, did he want her there? "Shots all around!" Paul yelled as he whipped out a bottle of Jameson from his bag. Brooke scrunched her nose as she sipped on her Captain and Diet, "You want me to shoot straight whiskey? You disgust me." Stephanie laughed at the comment, knowing deep down she felt the same. Paul shook his head at Brooke, "You're about to hang with the big dogs now pretty girl. We don't drink Cosmos and wine coolers here. Now take the shot like a man, you can chase it down with your Mike's Hard Lemonade in the fridge." Brooke threw him a dirty look and flipped him off, "Just because I'm not a whiskey fan doesn't mean I'm sipping wine coolers, honey. Pour the fucking shot."

"That's what I'm talking about!" Paul slammed the shot glasses on the table and poured the whiskey to the top of each one. "Here's to not remembering this moment when we wake up tomorrow," he stated as the three raised their shot glasses and quickly threw back the bitter liquid. Brooke quickly chased it with her Captain and Diet, "Oh fuck," she chuckled with a fake gag. She looked over at Stephanie who playfully stuck her finger down her throat. "You can forget about doing any more of those tonight with me, baby. I'll be tasting that shit all night" Stephanie said as she made herself a drink. Paul rolled his eyes at the girls as he poured himself another shot and downed it like it was water, "More for me."

After they finished up their drinks, the three headed down to the hotel bar. The place was rather big, and obviously a restaurant as well. There was a large banquet room to the back, and the bar was off to the right. It was already swamped with WWE crew. Camera men, technical producers, athletes, behind the scene business men; all of which were laughing and talking, drinks in hand. Brooke went to the bar and ordered a drink, why not keep the buzz going? "Fox!" she heard behind her. She turned to see none other than Vince calling from behind her. "Hey you!" she yelled back as she embraced the man in a hug. "How is my other daughter doing on this beautiful evening? I wasn't expecting to see you here- you look fantastic" he stated as he looked her up and down. Brooke blushed, "Thanks old man. And I'm doing awesome, how are things?" Stephanie wobbled over and threw her arms around her father, "Daddyyyyy!! Wasssuuuppp man?" she stammered. Brooke raised her eyebrows and laughed. Clearly Paul had talked her into some more Jameson shots. Vince looked over at Brooke, "Is this your doing?" he asked. Brooke shook her head, "I'm innocent. That's all McMahon doing right there. Free will, Vince. Free will."

Vince catered to his daughter and Brooke wondered off to mingle. She ran into one of the Diva's, Lita, and got chatting. Brooke knew a few of the girls through Stephanie, but usually tried to steer clear from most of them. There was always some kind of drama going on, and Brooke simply wasn't interested in any of that garbage. But as always, the conversation slowly steered in that direction. "So Sable, apparently the bitch thinks she's hot shit" Lita said as she sipped her wine. The two girls looked over to where she was standing, wearing a short red dress and leaning over the bar flirting with Brock Lesnar; one of the wrestlers. "She's a fucking slut dude. Talk about a ring rat. The bitch has sucked so much cock backstage that her beer is dripping down her chin from her jaw being permanently ready for dick." Brooke grinned and looked around the room as she sipped her beer and waited for someone to rescue her from this pointless conversation. She continued to smile and nod as Lita went about her drunken ranting.

"Well, well, look who came all the way to Austin just to see me," Brooke heard from behind her. She knew exactly who it was before he even spoke, she could just feel his presence. She smiled and turned around as she looked up into a pair of green pools. Mark's jaw hit the floor when he looked at her. She had on a black, strapless dress that hugged her curves perfectly. Her curly black hair was fell slightly over her eyes, and he brushed it back with his fingers to look at her. "You never seize to amaze me sweetheart. You look breathtaking once again". Brooke could feel her cheeks turning red at his words. Any doubt she had about him not wanting to see her tonight, quickly disappeared upon looking into his eyes.


	6. Chapter 6 :: Secrets

**Hey guys, thanks for the reviews and the private messages I've been recieving on the story. It's my first fanfic so please keep them coming! =] Two more chapters for you guys, after these two the drama is going to start picking up. Can Mark handle Brooke's inner deamons? Its not all about inner beauty! Get ready. **

Chapter Six

Brooke studied him, he looked gorgeous without even trying. He wore black jeans and a white "Affliction" T-Shirt, with a white bandana wrapped around his head to match. Brooke had to catch her breath upon staring into his eyes for the first time in days. "So what brings you to Austin, gorgeous? You just couldn't wait to see me again- is that it?" Mark stated sarcastically as he smiled down at her. Brooke grinned; "God, it's almost like you can just read my every thought" she shot back. "Well I'm glad you're here," he said taking her hand. "I want to show you off." Mark pulled her along through the crowd over to a group of guys standing by the bar. Brooke could feel their eyes gazing at her.

"Brooke, I'd like to introduce you to a couple of good friends of mine. That's Jeff Hardy, his brother Matt, Scott Hall, and Randy Orton. They're a really great group of guys and probably the best in the business today." He said motioning over to the men. Brooke smiled at them all, shaking hands and engaging in small talk. "You look very familiar, Brooke." Scott Hall said as he stared at her with a look of confusion. Brooke thought the same thing upon looking at him as well, until it finally dawned on her. "WCW? You used to wrestle with my brother, Kevin Nash?" The whole group whipped their heads towards her with eyes wide open, including Mark. "You're Kevin's sister?" Mark asked, shocked. Scott nodded in agreement, "That's it, little girl! God damn it's been years! Look at you all grown up; I hope that Kevin is keeping a close eye on you." Scott said as he sipped his beer. Mark looked down at her, still surprised. "So is 'Fox' your model name or something?" he asked sounding rather irritated, thinking that she had possibly lied to him about something as simple as her name. Brooke grinned at him, "Shockingly, no, it is not my model name it is my real name", she stated defensively. "When Kevin was born, he inherited my father's last name. My father had promised my mother that one day they would get married, and she didn't feel like going through all the legal bullshit of changing Kevin's name from 'Fox' to 'Nash' had my dad kept his word. After he found out that my mother was pregnant with me, he took off a few months into it. So I inherited her last name. Not too sure why she never got around to changing Kevin's after our dad took off, no one ever thinks that we are related because of it." Brooke winked at Mark, reassuring him that she had been truthful. Mark grinned at her, "I guess we didn't get that into it at dinner, huh?"

She smiled, "Maybe life stories aren't the best thing to get into on a first date." Jeff glanced over at Brooke, "I believe I've met Kevin before," he said to her. "It's been a while though. No wonder he kept you a secret. Probably doesn't want any wrestlers knowing he's got a smoking hot little sister." Brooke laughed, "Thank you. And yes, he's always tried to keep me far, far away from the business. But it never helped that I was friends with Stephanie McMahon, the daughter of the king of wrestling." The guy's chuckled, "I wouldn't say king, queen maybe," Matt said under his breath as he sipped his beer. Mark looked over at him, seemingly irritated, "Well just remember that you would be a damn nobody without him. So maybe you should watch your fucking mouth and show a little gratitude for all the man has given you." Matt quickly bit his tongue and turned away. If there was one thing that Mark couldn't stand, it was a man who took the business for granted. This was his passion, and he expected everyone to be as grateful as he was for the opportunities that Vince had given not just him, but countless others. Mark knew how anal Vince could be when it came to business, and he was well aware that it irritated many of the wrestlers at times. But the World Wrestling Federation was Vince's sweat, blood, and tears. Mark shook his head and walked away as he sipped his beer. He needed some fresh air after getting so heated.

Mark had always been the locker room leader because he put the business first, before everything. It wasn't a role he asked for, it just seemed to happen that way. Many of the wrestlers, male and female, were constantly asking Mark for advice in all aspects of the business. They trusted his word, honesty, and loyalty to the company. And rightfully so, he had been in the business for about fifteen years now.

Brooke watched as Mark stormed out the door leading to the balcony. "Way to go punk, ya pissed off the big dog" Scott said as he took a gulp of his beer. "Sorry man, I didn't think he'd take such offence to it. We all talk a little shit about Vince here and there" Matt said shrugging his shoulders. Jeff nodded, "Probably just the alcohol, everyone's been drinking, we'll all be over it in the morning." Brooke headed towards the door, she felt she may as well check on Mark and make sure he was okay. She found him leaning on the balcony sipping his beer. "You okay?" she asked softly from behind him. He turned around and smiled down at her, "Couldn't be better, Foxy." She walked up beside him and leaned next to him, looking down at the street below. She smiled over at him, "Are you sure? You seemed a little irritated back there." Mark chuckled and took another sip of his beer, "I guess I take it a little personally when people shit all over the business that made them. It's not the first time I've heard Matt run his mouth. The kid has talent; I'd hate to see him throw it away by talking stupid. Sometimes I have to be the one to straighten them out and put them in their place. It isn't always pretty, and I'm not always that nice." Brooke laughed, "That was nice, huh?" Mark nodded, "You're damn right it was nice. That's the nicest I've been in a while" he said smiling. Brooke's heart nearly melted. She couldn't help but adore his smile, and it was the most contagious smile she'd ever come across.

"Kevin Nash's sister, man." He said shaking his head. "So am I going to get in trouble for falling for that pretty face of yours? Hopefully big brother doesn't come after me." Brooke smiled, "I'm a big girl. I think I know the difference between what I want and what I need." Mark looked down at her and inched closer to her face. He brushed a strand of her hair back with his finger, and Brooke could feel his warm breath on her face. "A big girl? So what do you want?" he asked as she leaned closer to him. She grinned as she lifted herself up on her tiptoes and pressed her mouth into his. He wrapped his big arms around her waist and lifted her in the air as she wrapped her legs around him. She tangled her fingers through his hair, exploring his mouth with her tongue and enjoying the pressure of his body against hers. Mark felt like he was going to lose it, the heated bulge in his pants was growing and he almost couldn't control himself. He pulled away from her and they both had to catch their breath. She cradled his face in her hands and smiled as she looked down at him, still in his arms. "And what do you need?" he asked in a husky voice, well aware of this discomfort her sexiness was bringing him.

Just then the door opened and Mark looked over to find Matt Hardy with his mouth wide open, staring at the two of them. "I, I-I'm sorry Mark, man. I just came out here to apologize I noticed you were out here for a while bu- but I'll um, come back later?" Brooke slid down from Mark's hold and he planted her gently on her feet as he chuckled to himself, rubbing his beard in apparent frustration. "Matt, man, you're two for two today. Can we talk about this some other time?" Matt was about to protest until he felt the piercing sting of Mark's green eyes stabbing holes through him. He simply nodded, turned and walked back into the hotel bar. Mark shook his head as he looked back at Brooke. She was standing there eyes wide with a huge grin on her face. "What's so funny?" he asked. He couldn't help but smile when he saw that she was. "Nothing, just the convenient timing; poor Matt Hardy." He walked over to her and leaned down, placing a gentle kiss on her lips as he heard the door fling open once more behind him. Mark didn't even turn to see who it was, he just rolled his eyes at Brooke and she laughed. "Poor Matt Hardy? Poor me!" Mark said as he turned around to see a wasted Stephanie McMahon stumbling towards Brooke.

"Where have you BEEEEEEN Brooke?" She asked as she flopped into her friend's arms. Brooke caught her and tried to hold her up. She couldn't help but laugh at Stephanie's intoxicated state. "Steph, where the hell is Paul?" Brooke asked. "I don't know he fucking went to bed." She mumbled. "And he just left you in the bar by yourself?" Brooke asked angrily. Stephanie shrugged. Brooke pulled her over to a chair and plopped her down on it. "Alright sweetie, I'm taking you back to my room for bed, okay?" Stephanie just nodded and flopped her head forward. Brooke turned towards Mark with a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry. I want to continue this conversation some other time okay?" Mark nodded with a smile as he kissed her forehead. He then walked up to Stephanie and scooped her in his arms. "Let me take her to your room". Brooke grinned at him, "Why what a gentleman. Stephanie, be a good girl and try not to throw up on Mark. Wait until we get to the room, okay?" Mark shot Brooke a dirty look and chuckled, "I know you're joking, but if it happens now you're in deep shit." Brooke laughed. Mark nodded his head towards the door, "Lead the way".


	7. Chapter 7 :: Interruptions

Chapter Seven

Mark followed Brooke as she led him to her hotel room, with a passed out drunk Stephanie McMahon cradled in his arms. "You're not taking her back to Paul's room?" Mark asked from behind her. Brooke shook her head, "I don't like the fact that he was feeding her shots all night and just left her at the bar by herself. Not the best first impression if you ask me. I'd rather she stays with me so I know she's safe." Mark nodded, "True. But really Paul is harmless. Nice of you to look out for your friend though." He said as he winked at her. She smiled as she slipped her key card into the door and held it open for Mark.

Mark entered the room and gently placed Stephanie on the bed. "Thank you Mark. It would have been a long walk without you." Brooke said as she took off Stephanie's shoes and pulled the covers over her. Mark smiled, "Happy to help." The two just stood silent for a moment looking into each other's eyes. The chemistry between the two of them was there, without question. However Brooke wasn't quite sure that she was ready to make any type of commitment at this point in her life, and she wasn't one hundred percent sure if Mark was ready either. 'We found each other at the wrong time' Brooke thought to herself. After a minute of awkward silence, Brooke chuckled out loud, "Are you waiting for a tip or something?" She asked playfully. Mark's eyes widened, "So this is how I get treated for helping out a friend? You're just booting me out the door huh? Alright I get it." Mark turned to walk out the door and Brooke's smile grew wider as she could hear him laughing sarcastically under his breath. "Okay, okay" Brooke called after him. He stopped and turned towards her with a grin on his face. "Let me give you that tip, and then you can get the fuck out of my room". Before Mark could shoot back her lips were pressed against his. She wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss, their tongues tangling together. The taste of her was enough to drive Mark insane, he didn't know what it was about this girl but the way she made him feel was something he never experienced before. She made him feel like a teenager, butterflies and all.

She pulled him away from the door and towards the empty bed next to Stephanie's. Mark fell back onto the pillows as Brooke climbed on top of him, never parting from his lips. She was well aware of the fact that the two of them knew very little about each other, but she simply didn't care. She wanted him, so badly that the consequences of it were the last thing on her mind. His hands tangled through her long dark hair and slid down her back. She sat up and unzipped her dress. She then pulled it off over her head and tossed it to the floor. Mark could do nothing but grin as he looked her up and down in nothing but a lace black bra and thong, damn she was sexy. His hand caressed her cheek and slid down her body to her breast. He began massaging them through her bra as she leaned down to kiss him once again, lightly grinding on top of him. Suddenly the two of them heard a loud thump and both their heads shot over towards the door. Brooke then noticed Stephanie on the floor, she rolled off the bed and was stumbling to her feet. She raced towards the bathroom with her hand over her mouth and slammed the door behind her. Once she heard the toiled lid flip open and a sick Stephanie head first in it, she knew that this was going to have to wait. Mark let out a deep sigh and pulled the pillow over his head letting out a deep moan. Brooke smiled at him and patted his chest as she slid off him and walked over to her suit case.

She threw on a pair of white sweatpants and a pink t-shirt and headed to the bathroom to help her friend. She opened the door and crept over to Stephanie. Brooke pulled Stephanie's hair back into a pony tail and rubbed her back as the bile forced its way out. "I'm never fucking drinking Jameson again" she mumbled into the toilet. "I know, I know", Brooke whispered as Stephanie let it all out. Once she was relieved, Brooke pulled Stephanie to her feet and grabbed her toothbrush and toothpaste from her friend's suitcase. "Here, honey, freshen up. Let me know if you want to hop in the shower- the warm water might make you feel better." Stephanie nodded, "I think I'm going to, I puked in my hair" she said as she leaned over the sink and splashed some cool water on her face. Brooke nodded and smiled, "I'll go grab your shampoo." Brooke left the bathroom to get a couple of things for Stephanie and found Mark sitting over the bed with his head in his hands. He looked up at her when he heard the bathroom door close. "I'm sorry, one second" she whispered to him as she grabbed a bottle of Shampoo and some towels, and took it into the bathroom for Stephanie. Once her friend was taken care of, Brooke plopped next to Mark on the bed. He smiled at her and put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in to a tight hug.

"You're an amazing woman, Brooke." Mark said as he kissed her forehead. Brooke laughed, "I think I've tortured you enough today." Mark chuckled, "Nah, I just need a little ice and a cold shower and I'll be good as new." Brooke smiled, "You're a good sport." She kissed his lips, and he lightly ran his fingers through her hair again and stood up. "I'll let you get some sleep. Hopefully I'll see you in the morning?" he asked. Brooke grinned, "I don't know," she said as she stood up next to him. "I'm a pretty busy girl, I mean; I'd have to switch a couple of things around in my schedule. Maybe cancel one of my many breakfast dates and I can try to squeeze you in." Mark cupped her face in his hands and pressed his lips to hers once again without saying a word, he couldn't get enough of her. She smiled as he did, and he turned and headed out the door. He certainly knew how to leave her hanging and wanting more, the only problem is he did the same to himself. He wanted nothing more than to turn around, wrap her in his arms and carry her off to his room so there would be no interruptions. But he had to be patient, tonight was clearly not the night. "Damn cold showers…" he thought to himself as he headed to the elevator.


	8. Chapter 8 :: A Gut Feeling

Chapter Eight

Brooke awoke the next morning in a daze. She had a slight head ache, which was not unusual considering she always had some sort of hangover after a long night of drinking. She looked over to see Stephanie in nothing but a towel sprawled out on her bed, still passed out. Brooke chuckled to herself. She looked over at the clock which read 10:15am. She hopped out of bed and brushed her teeth, quickly throwing on a sweat suit and heading down to her car not long after. "Please tell me that there is s Starbucks around here", she mumbled to herself as she typed it into her GPS. 'Three miles, perfecto' she thought. Brooke grabbed a bagel and a coffee for herself and Stephanie and headed back to the room. "Oh Lord," Brooke said out loud as she saw that Stephanie was in the same position she was when Brooke headed out almost forty-five minutes ago. Brooke slapped Stephanie's ass as she walked by, "Wake up, check out time is in an hour and I brought breakfast." Stephanie stirred at the smell of coffee. "Mmm…" she murmured into her pillow. "I'm up, I'm up". She said as she rolled over, noticing what she was sleeping in as she did so. "Last night was not a night I'd like to remember", Stephanie said as she sipped her hot coffee. Brooke sat on the bed across from her, "You remembered it?" Brooke asked surprised.

Stephanie laughed and flipped off her friend. "What?" Brooke said, "You were vomiting your organs what the fuck did you expect me to think?" Stephanie shook her head, "That bad, huh?" She asked. Brooke nodded, "That bad, my friend. You were a train wreck. Lucky for you Mark was a gentleman and carried you up to the room." Stephanie smiled, "I'll be sure to thank him." Brooke laughed, "Yeah, thank him for that and then apologize after." Stephanie looked confused, "Why would I apologize?" she asked. "Because of you he went back to his room with swollen blue balls." Stephanie's eyes widened and her face looked disgusted. "What the hell did I do? Please tell me I didn't hook up with Mark!" she stated in horror, thinking of what Paul might do if he found out. Brooke couldn't help but let out a burst of laughter, "Stephanie, not even Mark would have taken advantage of you in your state last night. I'll explain later…"

The two ate their breakfast and packed up. They headed down to the lobby to check-out as Brooke explained the night's events to Stephanie on the way out. "No way!" Stephanie exclaimed. "You were on top of Mark in your underwear about to fuck him while I was passed out drunk right next to you?" Stephanie asked shocked. "Jesus, when you put it like that I sound like a horrible friend," Brooke stated as she sipped her coffee and chuckled. "What about fucking?" Paul asked from behind them. Stephanie turned around with an irritated smirk on her face, "Where the hell did you disappear to last night?" Stephanie asked angrily. "I'm sorry baby that was my bad. I got so wasted I don't even know how I ended up back at the room. It won't happen again." Something about Paul was shady to Brooke. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she wasn't sure that she trusted him or his motives. Stephanie had gotten involved with a few wrestlers in the past who only wanted her around to get a boost for their careers. Being the boss's daughter, Brooke had always told Stephanie to steer clear from wrestlers because to her, they were all using and abusing her best friend's status in the industry. And she was right for the most part. Stephanie couldn't help herself, she grew up in the business and was attracted to wrestlers. Brooke couldn't blame her for that, look at how easily Mark won her over in a matter of weeks.

Maybe it was just Brooke being paranoid due to her friend getting hurt in the past. Stephanie seemed happy, and Brooke didn't want to be over protective. But she'd definitely be keeping her eye on Paul. The uneasy feeling she felt around him wasn't there for nothing. Brooke's butterflies intensified when she felt a pair of arms wrapped around her waist. She looked down and smiled as she saw all the tattoos. "Couldn't resist one of your many breakfast dates I see," Mark said motioning towards her coffee. Brooke grinned, "Sorry, but Starbucks can't be stood up." He leaned down and kissed her lips in full view of everyone, which surprised Brooke. Stephanie cleared her throat and the two glanced over at her. "Thanks Mark, for taking me back to the room last night." She said slightly embarrassed. "No problem" Mark said grinning as he thought about last night. "Oh," she added, "And sorry about your blue balls." Brooke's eyes shot open and she immediately punched Stephanie's arm. "Ow! What? You told me to apologize!" Brooke grabbed Stephanie's arm and pulled her closer, "I was joking you fucking idiot!" Stephanie couldn't help but laugh. Mark chuckled, "Yeah well you should apologize girl. It was your damn fault." He joked.

Everyone was off for the next three days. Some wrestlers had promotional work to do, others were free to enjoy their days as they pleased and headed on home. Kevin had called Brooke and told her that he was planning to stop and visit her tomorrow. Brooke was ecstatic. It was hard for her to spend time with her brother because he too was constantly on the road. A few of Mark's friends were throwing a house party that night, and Mark wanted Brooke, Stephanie, and Paul to swing by for a couple of drinks since they all lived in Houston. Brooke was excited to meet some of Mark's friends. She wondered how Kevin would react knowing that she and Mark were seeing each other. Even though she wasn't serious with Mark, Brooke knew how uptight and over protective her brother could be- especially when it came to the wrestling business. Kevin always tried to keep Brooke out of the lime light. Considering what they went through as a family, the last thing that Kevin ever wanted was for Brooke to be badgered with questions about her childhood. Most of Kevin's co-workers knew of her, and they knew that Kevin had no parents. That was always as far as the details went. His little sister dating a wrestler? Now that was unheard of. Brooke was afraid to tell her brother if things were to get more serious, but for now she planned on just playing it by ear. After all, Mark was not her boyfriend- not by a long shot.

Mark always enjoyed his days off, even though they were rare. But hey, he certainly appreciated them more. He was lucky to not be doing any promotional work the next few days. Usually he is making appearances and signing autographs. Which, by all means, Mark loved meeting the fans. But he didn't really consider it a day off if his hours were booked with promotional work. Mark and Paul drove to Stephanie's house where the girls were waiting, and the car ride conversation was nothing short of amusing. Mark considered Paul a friend, and he trusted him. Paul had proved himself not just in the ring, but outside of it as well. As far as Mark was concerned, Paul was a loyal and trustworthy opponent in the ring, and a great friend outside of it. "Things between you and Steph are getting pretty serious huh man?" Mark asks as Paul smirks over at him. "Slowly, but surely. I'll tell you one person who doesn't think it's so great is Vince. The man threatened my job. I'm not sure what to do about it; Stephanie would be straight up heartbroken if we had to end it just because I'm her father's employee. We're hoping that he will eventually see it our way. I'm really into her man…" Mark nodded, "What matters is what you're feeling, Paul. Who gives a damn what anyone else has to say about it. You know what your intentions are, eventually he'll see that." That was one thing Mark couldn't agree on when it came to Vince. He knew Vince was just trying to put business first, but when real feelings are involved things can get messy. "What about you and Brooke?" Paul asked. Mark grinned at the thought of her, he felt like a kid in middle school with his first big crush. "She's a great girl. I enjoy spending time with her. Nothing too serious yet. We've just been getting to know each other and having fun." Paul nodded, "Hey I get it man, she's gorgeous." He stated. Mark nodded, "She is, but there is more to it than that. I'm trying to figure her out. I really know nothing about her she's a fucking mystery. We've been talking for a few weeks now and every time I see her I feel like we just met. It's intriguing though, I like it."

The two men arrived at Stephanie's house and walked up to her door, knocking on it playfully. When they didn't get an answer, they began to bang on it as they yelled like cavemen. Stephanie opened the door with angry eyes, "You are like fucking children!" she exclaimed. The two men laughed as they made their way inside. Brooke made her appearance but a minute later, and Mark's mouth dropped to the floor at the sight of her. He wondered how she could manage to look completely casual, in a black halter top and jeans, yet still look completely sexy. "Ready ladies?" Paul asked. "Only if you swear to me that Jameson will not make an appearance at this party." Brooke said as everyone laughed. "No promises my friend, no promises" he replied with a grin.


	9. Chapter 9 :: Eyes Of Stone

Chapter Nine

Mark walked in first, as it was his friend Jeff who was throwing the party. "Jeff Hardy?" Brooke asked with a smirk. "There's other Jeff's in the world, sweetie" Mark said playfully. As they walked in a few people shouted, "Mark!" upon seeing him. A couple of men walked up and gave Mark a quick hug and engaged in small talk. Mark introduced Brooke first, followed by Stephanie and Paul. Mark's friend Jeff walked up and embraced him right away. "Long time no see buddy, how the hell are ya?" Jeff asks as he glances over at Brooke. "I'm good man. Let me introduce you to a couple friends of mine." Mark said motioning towards them. Mark grabbed Brooke's hand, "This is my friend Brooke. And that's Stephanie and Paul, a few of my co-workers."

"Nice to meet you all, and welcome. Grab a beer and make yourself at home guys." Jeff said with a smile. Brooke met a few of Mark's closer friends, all of which had great personalities- aside from one. She was introduced to Craig, Jeff's close friend who was currently living with him upon coming home from the war in Iraq. He seemed very stand offish, and Brooke didn't understand quite why until she was chatting with Jeff later on. Jeff had told Brooke how Craig's wife had sent him here for a while due to his post-partum-depression after being discharged from the army for back problems. She didn't want him hanging around their children in his unusual state of mind. Jeff said that Craig use to be an outgoing, funny, and caring family man. Now he was nothing but an empty shell. Jeff was in the process of finding a good therapist for his friend. He refused to turn his back on Craig and hoped to get him back to his normal self so he could return to his children, his one true joy in life.

Brooke was deeply saddened upon hearing his story. She knew what it was like to suddenly have everything that you love taken away from you in the blink of an eye. Brooke grabbed a beer and figured she'd go try to talk to him. He was sitting on the couch by himself, drinking out of a flask. Brooke sat next to him and introduced herself, "Hi, Craig. My name is Brooke. I heard that you're a war veteran and I wanted to personally thank you for defending our country." She stated as she held out her hand. Craig looked at her for a moment, hesitated, then shook her hand and smiled at her. When he didn't say anything Brooke tried to engage in small talk. "So, where are you from Craig?" She asked as Mark came up and sat beside her. Mark introduced himself as well and then began talking to a friend who was perched on the chair next to him. Brooke kept her attention on Craig, she was interested to learn more about him and hear his stories if he was willing to tell them. "I'm originally from Round Rock, Texas. But I've been hangin' here for a while- you know," he looked down, "tryin' to recover." Brooke nodded. "Well I'm sure you'll do great and you'll be home in no time. Hang in there." She said as she placed her hand gently on his. Craig smiled, "Hope so. I miss my babies." He stated. "How many kids do you have?" She asked.

"Two."

"Oh yeah? How old?"

"Well my baby girl is three, my son is five."

"Any pictures?"

Craig smiled and reached into his wallet. He pulled out a picture of himself, his wife, and two children. It was clearly a professional picture. Brooke took it delicately, "What a beautiful family. You have a lot to be thankful for." She said with a reassuring smile. Craig nodded, "You're right about that, Brooke." The two engaged in a bit of small talk and Brooke soon got up to mingle with a few other people. Mark was dragging her around, telling stories and joking with his friends. Brooke was enjoying his company more and more as the days went on. She overheard Jeff trying to coax Craig out of drinking, "Man you shouldn't fucking be drinking. Booze is a depressant dude it's not okay for you." The two went into the kitchen and Brooke decided she should butt out and mind her own business. As the night went on, Craig was clearly getting more and more intoxicated. He sat slouched over in the chair looking half asleep. Brooke looked over at him, his head down and eyes slanted at the floor. As the others were engaged in conversation, Brooke leaned over and quietly called his name. When he looked up at her, she could have sworn her heart skipped a beat. If she could reach up and touch his eyes, she'd bet they were cold as ice. His stare sent chills and daggers down her spine; there was nothing but misery in his eyes. They exchanged glances for a moment, and Brooke found she could no longer hold his gaze and had to turn away. His eyes haunted her the rest of the evening, and she wondered if she should say something to Jeff- but what did she know about Craig? Clearly if something was wrong, Jeff would be the first to know it.

As the party winded down, Mark, Brooke, Paul, and Stephanie were the last to leave. "Had a great time catching up with you man. We need to do it again soon, for sure." Mark said as the two men hugged. "For sure bro. Nice meeting all of you." Jeff said as he waved goodbye to them. "You too," Stephanie said back. "That was fun man, good time seeing everyone. Funny that I remember a lot of those guys." Paul said as he drove home. Mark and Brooke sat in the back seat together, Stephanie sat upfront next to Paul. Mark put his hand on Brooke's lap and smiled at her as he rubbed her leg. He leaned over and planted a gentle kiss on her lips. "Did you have a good time?" He whispered to her. Brooke nodded and kissed him again, this couldn't possibly get old. Just then, Mark's cell phone began to ring. Mark chuckled, "Always interruptions," he whispered to her as he kissed her neck. He reached into his pocket and saw Jeff on his caller ID. "Why the hell is Jeff calling? We just left." Mark asked allowed as he answered the phone.

"Hello?" Mark said through the phone. "Dude, I need you back here now!" Jeff said frantically. "What's wrong?" Mark asked sounding concerned as he let Brooke listen in by leaning closer to her ear. "I need you back here now man I don't know what the fuck to do, call 911 or something or… oh shit. Fuck dude please, please just get back here." Mark looked at Brooke with unconditional concern. "We'll be there in a minute" Mark said. "Hurry!" Jeff screamed as he hung up the phone. "Paul, turn around now. We need to get back over there."


	10. Chapter 10 :: Old Wounds Opened

Chapter Ten

Paul sped back to Jeff's house, per orders from a frantic Mark in the back seat. Mark didn't like the sound of Jeff's voice, and frankly neither did Brooke. Brooke had a horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach, and it was all pointing to Craig. 'What else could it possibly be?' she thought to herself. She didn't want to say anything to Mark, she could only pray that she was wrong. The four quickly got out of the car and raced inside. "Girls, I want you to stay out here for a minute please" Paul said as Mark made his way inside. Mark was stopped dead in his tracks at the sight before him; his dinner had literally come half-way up his stomach. Paul followed shortly behind, his mouth dropped and he quickly turned away when he realized what they had raced back here for. Craig had taken a shot gun and killed himself. The only way Mark could even tell it was Craig was because of the outfit he was wearing that night, his face was completely gone. Stephanie and Brooke made their way in upon hearing Paul scream at the site. Brooke knew exactly what to expect, and the scene was erringly familiar. Brooke couldn't stand there long, she made her way back outside almost immediately.

Mark looked over at Jeff who was sobbing uncontrollably on the floor. "Did you call the cops?" Mark asked frantically. "N-no man. I just called you guys…" Jeff said hyper ventilating. "I just wanted to make sure that this shit was real… am I really fucking seeing this right now?" Paul quickly grabbed the cell phone from Jeff's shaky hands and dialed 911. Mark looked over once more at Craig. 'How could he do this?' he thought to himself. He quickly turned his attention to the girls, who were standing outside, mouths a- gate, simply staring stunned at one another. Tears welled up in Stephanie's eyes as she covered her mouth with her hands. A silent sob escaped her lips as she crumbled to the cement. Brooke stared at the scene in silence, everyone in tears. Mark looked into her eyes, and for a moment, saw into the depths of her tormented soul. Although she always hid her anguish well, he could tell that something deeper then what they just saw was haunting her.

The cops quickly arrived and taped off the area. Investigators and detectives were at the scene taking pictures and collecting evidence. Mark, Brooke, Stephanie, Paul and Jeff all stood outside for questioning. It was clear to the police that this was a suicide; however it was standard protocol to talk to the witnesses. Brooke hadn't said much, and she wasn't crying either. The look on her face was blank and empty, there was too much going on in her head to show it all on her face. She thought about Craig's children, they were going to go through something so similar to what Brooke had when she was a little girl. She felt nothing but sorrow for this man and his family. It was not going to be an easy road for them. Brooke felt selfish when she started feeling sorry for herself and quickly shunned the idea of her mother away. Any time Brooke thought of her mom she felt immense guilt. She had tried to bury the thought of her mother, because thinking about it only brought her pain. She still had anger in her heart for her mother, and she wasn't sure she'd ever fully forgive her.

The four friends drove home in silence. It was now four o'clock in the morning and they were all exhausted. Paul dropped Jeff off at his mother's house, since there was no way he'd be spending any time in that household for a while, if ever again. Mark was sure he'd sell it after it got cleaned up. He knew Jeff all too well, and Jeff could never live in a place which exemplified death. Once they got back to Mark's house, the couple's said their goodbyes and parted ways. Stephanie held on to Brooke for what seemed like a lifetime. Stephanie knew Brooke's past, and she knew that that was not an easy thing for her to witness. Stephanie tearfully looked at Mark before they left, "Please take care of her tonight".

Mark's heart sank at her words. Brooke seemed the least phased by it, but perhaps she was just too comfortable with keeping her emotions to herself. Mark knew that this was affecting Brooke, as well as she hid it. The two of them went into Mark's house together, silent. Mark looked over at her as she took her jacket off and threw it on the couch along with her purse. "You okay?" he asked her. Brooke weakly smiled at him and nodded, still not saying a word. "You want to hang here for a while?" he asked as he walked closer to her. She nodded once more as tears began to well up in her eyes. Mark pulled her over to him and embraced her in a tight hug as she lightly cried. Brooke hated crying, but she couldn't help herself at this point- and she certainly couldn't turn down the comfort that Mark's arms brought her. "I'm so sorry you had to see that, honey. I shouldn't have let you or Stephanie in there. That's a horrible thing to witness and it's my fault for not stopping you when you walked in. I'm so sorry." Brooke nodded once more through her tears. She couldn't find it in her heart to tell Mark about her childhood. Even though the mental picture of seeing Craig like that brought back memories of her mother, that surprisingly wasn't what was bothering her.

"I don't get it." She said through her tears. "He was showing me pictures of his wife and his kids. He was telling me how much he missed them and wanted to get better for them. Now they'll never see their father again and they'll have to live with what he did for the rest of their lives. I just don't get it." Mark sighed deeply and rubbed her back. "I don't either baby, but we don't know what was going on in his head. He was drinking, and he already had post partum depression from the war. Those two things mixed are a deadly combination. He wasn't thinking clearly. Things happen for a reason, we're all just going to learn from it and move on. We have no choice." Brooke chuckled through her tears, "Things happen for a reason? That's just a copout way of saying that things never work out. What is the damn reason? Is there a reason that those kids should have to live without their father? Who gives a damn if it makes them 'stronger', are they supposed to feel any sort of compensation for that? I'm sure that they would have been just as rough and tough had he still been around. Things don't happen for a reason. Things happen because life can fucking suck and it tests you. It pushes your sanity. You just have to hope that you don't race towards that brick wall like Craig did."

Mark stood there, stunned. He'd never heard Brooke sound so angry before. She was always a fun loving and care free girl. Mark knew that he didn't know much about her, and this only confirmed how little he truly did know. "Brooke tell me what's really bothering you." Mark asked as her put his finger under her chin and lifted her face up to meet his eyes. She gazed into them as a tear fell down her cheek. "It's not important." She said as she turned her face from him. "I'm going to head up to bed. It's going to be a long couple of days and Kevin is coming in later today. I'd really like it if we could all get together," she whispered as she attempted to change the subject. Mark nodded, "Let's go to bed." He said as he kissed her forehead and led her to the bedroom. She curled up in his arms, feeling ashamed that she had cried over her mother. It's been a while since that happened. Thank God Kevin was coming in today, it was now close to five o'clock in the morning, and the chance of either Brooke or Mark getting any sleep was slim to none.


	11. Chapter 11 :: Blast From The Past

**Thank you for the reviews. Two more chapters for you guys. Keep the reviews coming let me know how you're liking it =] Enjoy.**

Chapter Eleven

Brooke awoke a few hours later. Kevin was planning to arrive at her house at around 5:00pm and it was now 1:00pm. "Shit", she mumbled as she looked at the clock. She rolled over and found that Mark was missing. She hopped out of bed and put on her close from the night before, and headed downstairs to find Mark cleaning the kitchen. "Good morning, or should I say good afternoon," he said with a smile. Brooke grinned back at him. "Thanks for waking me, Kevin is going to be here in a few hours and I'm in your bedroom sleeping the day away." She said sarcastically. "Sorry, you looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you. I figured you could use some rest after last night. I was planning on waking you in another hour or so." Brooke smiled at him, "Well thank you, but I need to get going. Can I call you later? Maybe me, you, and Kevin could meet up for dinner? I can call Paul and Stephanie to come out too so it won't be too awkward for you." Mark laughed, "I've met your brother, many times before sweetheart. You do whatever you feel is necessary and I'll deal with the firing squad." Brooke grinned at him and placed a kiss on his lips, "If you say so." He smiled and playfully smacked her ass, "Well I do say so. Now go and get out of here if you're running as late as you say you are." Brooke grinned and strutted out the doorway, grabbing her coat and purse on the way out.

Brooke headed to her house and went on a cleaning binge. Kevin was always like a father to her, and she knew that he wouldn't approve of a messy household. Brooke chuckled to herself, last thing she needed was Kevin coming in and telling her to go and clean her room- which she knew all too well that he would. Five o'clock was creeping around the corner, and Kevin should be arriving at any moment. Brooke decided to not tell Kevin about last night, and she told Mark to keep hush about it as well. Even though all the events that took place were far from Mark's fault, Kevin would somehow find a way to blame Mark in order to protect Brooke. He always did. His little sister could do no wrong and if something bad were ever to happen to her, someone was going to pay for it. Brooke admired the fact that she was well taken care of, but sometimes Kevin could take it a little overboard.

Just as Brooke finished wiping the counters, she heard a knock on the door. "Kevin!" she yelled as she jumped into her brother's arms and embraced him in a hug. Kevin laughed, "Hey kid. Damn are you always this excited to see me?" Brooke grinned, "Well I had a good month and it's been a while since I've seen you. Would you prefer a little less enthusiasm?" she asked as she folded her arms across her chest. "Nah, I get enough of the stand-offish bitchy attitude from you most of the time, this is a nice change." He said with a sarcastic smirk. Brooke hit his arm, "I am not a stand-offish bitch, or whatever the hell you just called me."

Brooke had arranged for Kevin, Paul, Stephanie, Mark, herself, and Kevin's girlfriend Ashley, to go out for dinner and drinks later in the evening. She figured it would be a good distraction from the topic of her seeing Mark, the more people the better. Brooke told Kevin a bit about her feelings for Mark, and for lack of better words he was less than enthusiastic to hear that she was dating a wrestler. "But we're not 'dating'". She defended. Nope, didn't matter. Talking, dating, seeing, fucking, whatever the word is it didn't float his boat. "Girl, I've worked with wrestlers for a long damn time. They're fucking scum bags. They're on the road twenty-four seven and they're just looking for a quick fuck." Brooke rolled her eyes, "I've been talking to him for weeks and we've barley kissed. I think if he wanted a quick fuck he'd have moved on by now." Kevin shook his head, "I don't buy it. We'll see what his intentions are tonight, don't you worry your pretty little head about it." Brooke didn't expect any less from him; she just hoped that the night would go smoothly.

After some grocery shopping and picking up Ashley, Kevin's girlfriend from the airport, the gang all headed downtown to 'La Toltec', a Mexican restaurant with cheap margaritas and damn good food. Brooke walked in with Kevin and Ashley close behind, and grinned when she saw Mark, Paul, and Stephanie already at the bar. "Who is this attractive bunch?" Brooke said as she approached them. "Hey!" Stephanie exclaimed as she embraced her friend in a hug. "How are you doing?" she whispered. Brooke nodded, "I'm fine," she whispered back. "Please keep hush hush about what happened last night" Brooke said as they pulled away from their embrace. Stephanie nodded, "I know better" she replied. Kevin and Stephanie had once dated back in the day. They met through Brooke as luck would have it, but cut the cord early due to Stephanie not being able to handle him being on the road so much. Stephanie tells Brooke all the time that "we were young, we were stupid, but we were crazy about each other." Luckily the two have remained on good terms even though they rarely talk. "Hey you," Mark said as he pulled Brooke into a hug and kissed her. Kevin cleared his throat. "Hey Kevin, how are you man good to see you." Mark said standing up and giving Kevin a quick handshake. "You too man, how's the good old WWE?" Kevin asked. 'So far so good,' Brooke thought to herself. "Same old shit, different day. But we're getting by. How is WCW? I've heard some rumors about the business struggling a bit."

Mark use to work for WCW back in the day under the name 'Mean Mark Callous'. It was a good stepping stone; however they had told Mark that he would never amount to anything in the wrestling business. Once Mark met with Vince McMahon, the rest was history. "Yeah, not so hot man. I've been talking to Vince I'm trying to make my way into the WWE with Scott. Vince said he may have an angle for us along with Hogan for the 'NWO'. So I'm hoping that I can get the hell out of there before the shit really hits the fan." Kevin said as he ordered a beer from the bartender. "That's news to me," Brooke said surprised. "Why didn't you tell me? I could have talked to Vince for you- or Steph would have." Kevin locked eyes with Stephanie for a moment. No doubt that they were once head over heels for each other, but they were both so young at the time. Kevin was Stephanie's first real love, and she was devastated when she had to end it. But at the time, Kevin cared more about his rising career then he did about having a relationship with her.

After a few drinks at the bar, the gang decided to get a table and order some food. They say at a round table and put in some appetizers and few dinners to split up. Brooke was feeling a little tipsy at this point, and she knew that everyone else was as well. The guys were getting loud and rowdy, telling stories and joking around. While the girls were giddy, finding the slightest and most pointless things funny. Brooke was having a great time with everyone. Mark and Kevin were getting along fairly well, but Brooke knew that the questioning would begin eventually, whether in private or in front of everyone. Brooke began to feel a bit light headed, most likely due to the fact that she had been drinking so much and had no food in her system. "You okay?" Mark asked as he rubbed her back. Brooke nodded, "Just hungry. I'll be good after dinner." Mark smiled at her. "I think we're all still reeling after what happened last night", Paul chirped in. Everyone aside from Kevin and Ashley shot their heads up with eyes wide open. "Why, what happened last night?" Kevin asked. 'Shit' Brooke thought to herself. Paul quickly got the hint, "Oh, Brooke didn't tell you?" Brooke rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Tell me what?" Kevin asked, more serious this time. Well, no point in lying now.


	12. Chapter 12 ::When You Say Nothing At All

**here is a nice long chapter for you guys- more to come SOON. Just a fair warning, there is sexual content in this chapter. **

Chapter Twelve

Brooke looked over at Mark with a 'help me' expression on her face. Mark sighed and shot Paul a dirty look, then turned his attention to Kevin. "A friend of mine's buddy committed suicide last night. He shot himself and we all walked in and saw the scene. We weren't planning on telling you because we didn't want to bring up the topic, we're not trying to hide anything from you man. It was just a rough night." Brooke's head was in her hands and she was looking down. Kevin looked at his sister, then back at Mark with eyes full of fire. "Can I talk to you outside for minute Mark?" Kevin asked as he furiously stood up from the table, slamming his beer down as he did so. "Kevin, please not now the food is about to get here," Brooke pleaded, but to no avail. "Brooke, shut up. Mark, I'm not asking you I'm telling you. Outside for a minute." With that, Kevin turned around and stormed out of the restaurant. Brooke's eyes were threatening tears as Mark stood up. He looked down at Brooke, "I'll handle it," he said calmly and followed Kevin outside.

Brooke shook her head, this was not good. Kevin gets easily irritated when he drinks, and Brooke knew this was not going to go over well. "Why the fuck did you open your mouth?" Stephanie shot at Paul. "What? I didn't fucking know it was top secret!" He defended. "Yeah well you don't know much of anything do you?" Stephanie shot back as the arguing continued. Brooke looked down and tried to block out the gibberish. She hoped that Kevin wouldn't explode; this was the last thing that anyone needed.

Meanwhile outside, Mark opened the door to find an angry Kevin pacing back and forth. "Kevin look I..." Mark was quickly cut off by Kevin's hand shooting up in the air. "Don't talk." He said. Kevin stroked his blonde beard. "Do you have any idea what the fuck you did? How could you let Brooke see that shit she's been getting along great, and I know that that fucked with her head man." Mark looked confused, "Well it fucked with my head too Kevin, it's not like any of us asked to witness that shit." Kevin once again put his hand up, "No, you don't get it!" He boomed. "Did you know that when Brooke was thirteen our mother blew her fucking head off? Who do you think was the one who walked into our mother's bedroom and saw her there with her god damned brain halfway exposed? It was Brooke. I was twenty-one and out on my own at the time. I still to this day can't imagine the sight of that shit and I'm a grown ass man, she was a child. The memory of that day fucks with that little girl's mind every day of her life. She was addicted to drugs to numb that pain, luckily she turned her life around but she lives day to fucking day, hour to hour. I can't even tell you how many suicide scares I've had with her; she's been to every damn therapist on the west side." Mark was stunned. He had no idea about any of this. Brooke certainly hid it well, he couldn't believe that this was the same girl that he had been having a blast with the past few weeks.

"Kevin, this is the first I've heard about any of this. I would have been more cautious had I known but like I said none of us were expecting to walk in on that." Mark replied, not really knowing what to say after being put on the spot like that. Kevin shook his head, "Yeah well now you fucking know." Kevin turned and stormed to his car, calling Ashley on his way to the parking lot.

Back at the table Ashley's cell phone began to ring, "Hello?" she said. A pause, "Okay, I'll be right out." Ashley flipped her phone shut and gave an apologetic look to Brooke. "I'm sorry honey, he's in the car waiting for me. You know how he gets." Ashley reached into her purse and threw some money on the table. "I'm so sorry", she stammered as she got up from the table and headed out the door. Mark was walking in as she was heading out, shaking his head and looking heated. "What the hell happened?" Paul asked. Mark looked at him with an angry look in his eyes, "Get this shit to go, I need to get the fuck out of here." He boomed, sending chills up Brooke's spine. 'Damn it, what the hell happened?' she wondered. After asking for some boxes for their food, they all headed to the parking lot. "Well, I guess if someone could take me home since Kevin left me here," Brooke asked quietly as they walked. "We can take you home, sweetie." Stephanie said as she rubbed her stressed out friend's back. Mark shook his head, "You're coming with me. We have to talk." With that, Brooke said her goodbyes to Stephanie and Paul, and hopped into Mark's truck. The ride to Mark's house was completely silent, Brooke was afraid that even her own breathing would be too loud. The awkwardness began to get to her and she silently began to tear up, not wanting Mark to see her do so. It was an emotional couple of days, and Brooke was about ready to crack.

Once they arrived at Mark's house, the two walked inside still not saying a word. The silence was beginning to eat at Brooke. "Are you going to tell me what happened or just make me feel like a piece of shit by ignoring me?" she finally asked quietly, her voice cracking. Mark starred down at her, not sure how to approach her about the topic; but unfortunately now was the time. "Your brother gave me quite an earful." He said calmly. Brooke sighed heavily, "Mark, what the hell did he tell you?" Mark rubbed his beard in frustration, "Well, he told me about your mother." Brooke's mouth dropped. "He didn't…" she said, stunned. How could her own brother throw her under the bus like that? Brooke was furious, Kevin really took it too far this time. "That was not his place, telling you that." Brooke said as she turned away from Mark's gaze. "Why didn't you tell me?" Mark asked. "I would have kept you out of that house. I walked in first I could have kept you out of there." Brooke ignored the question as tears began to well up in her eyes. "Brooke, answer me. Why didn't you tell me any of that?"

"Because I didn't want to! Okay?" She yelled. Brooke shook her head and looked away as the tears fell down her face. "Because I loved the way that you looked at me." She said quietly. Brooke was terrified that Mark wouldn't be able to handle her past, especially since she was still coping with it and probably would be for the rest of her life. "Brooke, how long did you expect to hide it?" He asked. Brooke put her hands up to her face and wiped a few stray tears away. "I didn't want you to find out like this. You know I always use to think that my only place in life was to end up like her. What are other people suppose to believe?" Mark sighed heavily, "Kevin told me about the drugs, and the suicide scares as well" Mark mumbled out. Brooke's eyes were lit with anger, "I'm going to fucking kill him!" she yelled out as she plopped onto the couch in complete disbelief. Mark sat beside her. He wanted to comfort her but he wasn't sure how. He truly wanted to believe that he was the man who could save her from herself, but realistically he didn't know if he had it in him. Brooke was a great girl and shouldn't be judged on her past; after all, the past stays in the past right? Wrong. Not in this case. Brooke's past was haunting her every day, and Mark wasn't sure he knew how to deal with it.

He gently put his arm around her shoulders but Brooke pushed him away, refusing the comfort that she knew he could give her. "Mark you don't have to sit there and pretend." She said quietly as she wiped a few more tears away and stood up. "You're not obligated to me, and you don't have to act like you care when it's just not worth it. I didn't want you to find out this way and you don't have to give me your sympathy, that's the last thing I want." Mark sat on the couch with a blank look on his face as he stared into her eyes. "Brooke," he managed to blur out. Brooke looked at him, he didn't know what to say and she knew it. She nodded her head, "Just forget it." She said and turned to walk out the door. She grabbed her cell phone from her purse and began to dial Stephanie's number. Mark was in hot pursuit, following her out the door. "Where the hell are you going?" he called after her. "I'll just have Stephanie come and pick me up." She shouted back. Mark shook his head and ran up to her. He grabbed her phone and closed it, putting it in his pocket. "What are you doing Mark?" she asked. "You're not sleeping alone tonight, not on my watch." He said as he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. "Ow! Mark! I think I've been taking care of myself long enough without you!" She shouted angrily as she struggled to get out of his grasp, but to no avail.

Mark took her into the house and slammed the door shut, placing her on her feet and pushing her back against the closed door. "You don't know how the hell to take care of yourself, look at you. Your brother babies the shit out of you and you hide your emotions like a child. You can't always take the easy way out, Brooke. Not talking about shit and trying to forget it doesn't mean it didn't happen. You need to let it out, you're too fucking tense. You have way too many years of pain bottled up in your body." Brooke looked away from him. He was right in her face and she had nowhere to go, he had her pushed against the door and even though he was holding her back gently, she felt like she was in a straight-jacket. "You didn't know anything about me from before tonight. How the hell can you tell me I don't know how to take care of myself?" She said angrily, turning her face to look into his eyes once more. "Tell me that I'm wrong." He simply stated. She couldn't, he was right. "You're wrong," she lied. Mark shook his head, "You're a liar," he shot back.

Brooke struggled to get out of his grasp, "Mark please, let go of me" she pleaded as tears began forming in her eyes once more. She couldn't take much more of this and she was about to approach her breaking point, right where Mark wanted her to be. "What's wrong Brooke? You can't handle the truth? I'm not afraid to hurt your feelings; you need to fucking hear it. Show me something!" He boomed at her. She pushed him away and slapped him in the face full force. Mark stepped back, he asked for it. He simply nodded his head, "Feels good to show a little emotion, doesn't it?" He asked as the tears fell down her face. Brooke grabbed his shirt and pulled him towards her. His mouth was to hers almost instantly and he hoisted her in the air as her legs wrapped around his waist. Her arms were tight around his neck as she pulled him in for more, exploring his mouth with her tongue. Mark couldn't take any more of this, all the emotions she was making him feel were too much for him to bare, and he was intent on making sure tonight went the right way. He held her in the air with one arm as he locked the door, took out both his and her cell phones from his pocket and threw them to the ground. "No interruptions," he whispered into her neck as she let out a light chuckle. "That's my girl, I love it when you laugh." He said as he pulled her in once more, loving the feeling of her hot breath on his neck and mouth.

He carried her upstairs to the bedroom and sat on the bed, with Brooke sitting on top of him, straddling his lap. He pealed her shirt off over her head, and his shirt followed in short pursuit. Mark began massaging her breasts and lightly running small circles with his thumb around her nipple beneath her bra. Brooke moaned out in pleasure as her mouth came down to his once more. She began lightly grinding on top of him as she felt the bulge in his pants grow harder with every stroke. Brooke pushed him down on his back and began unbuttoning his pants. Mark didn't want to wait, he needed her now. He unzipped her pants and brought her down to her bra and underwear. She grinned as she slipped his jeans and boxers off in one swoop, and her mouth dropped when she finally realized his size. She had figured with his large stature that he'd be packing heat, but damn he was fully loaded. They repositioned themselves on the bed and Brooke began kissing his neck, lightly sucking and nibbling as she made her way down south. She took his throbbing cock into her hand and began lightly licking and sucking at the tip, teasing him for what seemed like an eternity to Mark. He pushed his head back and moaned, "You little tease," he whispered in a husky voice. Brooke grinned and took him fully into her mouth, bobbing her head up and down- sucking him dry. Mark felt he was about to lose it right there, "Damn baby, please don't stop" he mumbled under his heavy breathing. Just as Brooke felt his hardness shudder, she pulled back, smiling menacingly and began kissing his stomach.

Mark looked at her, "What the hell?" he asked. He was about to cum and she had teased him half way to death. "You don't expect me to do all the work now do you, baby?" She said with a grin as she climbed on top of him. Mark let out a chuckle as he picked her up and tossed her on her back, placing himself between her legs. "Paybacks are indeed a bitch," he said as he removed her bra exposing her bare breasts for the first time. He brought his mouth down to one of them and began sucking on her nipple and flicking it with his tongue. He then turned to the other, giving it the same attention and Brooke arched her back closer to him in response. "Mmm, indeed they are." She finally managed to reply. Mark sat up and turned his attention to the one article of clothing that separated them completely. He grabbed her underwear and slowly slid it off, tossing it to the floor.

"Spread those legs for me baby," Mark said, and Brooke happily obliged. He began licking her wet slit with his tongue, picking up the pace until Brooke was nearly screaming. He slipped a finger inside her, "Damn baby," he said and she looked at him. "What?" she asked. "You're so fucking wet," he mumbled and Brooke lightly laughed. She was so turned on by him, and just that alone was about to drive Mark up the wall. He slowly pushed his finger in and out of her wet slit, slipping another one in and picking up speed. Brooke began moving her hips forward to meet his thrusting fingers, "Oh fuck," she moaned. Mark then suddenly stopped and began kissing her stomach. "Déjà vu" Brooke chuckled. "Doesn't feel so good the other way around, does it you little tease?" He cooed.

Brooke grinned, "Mark, please fuck me," she whispered into his ear. God damn she was so sexy. Mark couldn't resist her any longer, he spread her legs and before Brooke could even breathe out he was inside her. Brooke threw her head back and wrapped her arms around his neck as he thrusted into her wet heat. "You're so fucking tight baby," he moaned as he began to move faster and harder. Brooke arched her hips up so he could thrust deeper into her. "Oh God," she yelled. "Harder Mark, please". Mark was about to burst, and he could feel that she was about ready to cum as well. "Cum for me baby, that's it" he grunted as she let out a cry and screamed his name. The feeling of her body shudder sent Mark over the edge and he exploded inside of her. Brooke collapsed with Mark on top of her, both of them breathing heavily.

"That was amazing," Brooke whimpered as Mark rolled off of her and onto his back. "See, now that's a great way to let out some emotion. I think if we keep at this every day for a few months, we'll start seeing some progress." Mark joked. Brooke couldn't help but laugh and Mark smiled at her. He rolled over and kissed her, loving her every taste. "Did I mention that I love it when you laugh?" He said again. Brooke smiled at him and blushed at his words. No one had ever made her feel like this before. "So I have to ask you a question that was already asked before but I never got an answer." He said, and Brooke looked at him slightly confused. "Okay, and what's that?" She whispered to him. He grinned at her, "What do you need?" He asked. Brooke was confused at first but then she thought back to their first kiss. Brooke laughed. "This." She said with a smile. Mark nodded in agreement and pulled her into his arms. "Get some sleep, sweetie. We'll talk in the morning."


	13. Chapter 13 :: Crying Soul

**Thanks everyone for your wonderful reviews! Changes has a few more chapters left, there is a bit more drama coming until the conclusion. I've been working on a new Mark Calaway story called "Deep Blue", and I'll be posting some of those chapters soon- maybe after Changes is finished. Thanks again, and keep reviewing! :D More to come!**

Chapter Thirteen

Brooke was having trouble sleeping, that much was quite obvious with her constant tossing and turning. Mark could feel her beside him and he sighed, "Brooke, what's wrong?" he asked quietly. Brooke turned to face him, "Nothing, just can't sleep", she whispered in the dark. Mark brushed her hair out of her face and looked into her eyes. It was dark as could be in the room, but the little bit of moon light peeking in through the window was enough for Mark to see the sadness in her eyes. "You want to talk?" he asked. Brooke shrugged. "We talked about this, Brooke, keeping it inside isn't the answer. Why don't you talk to me?" Brooke closed her eyes, "I don't know where to start, Kevin told you everything." She said sounding frustrated at the thought of Kevin spilling the beans. "But you haven't told me anything, I want to hear it from you." Mark said as he brushed her cheek with his thumb. Brooke took a deep breath, well, now was the time- her time.

"I was getting ready in the morning for my third day of high school. My mom was always usually awake in the morning to greet me, make my lunch, and get my breakfast. But this morning, she didn't get up. I figured she was tired, so I was really quiet all morning so I wouldn't disturb her. I got myself some cereal, packed my own lunch, and went to wait for the bus. It was a typical day at school, I use to play Volley Ball back then," she laughed at the thought- now she could barley run a mile. "So I stayed after school for practice and headed home. When I got there, my mom was still nowhere to be found, and her bedroom door was still closed. I went upstairs to change, then I figured I'd better go check on her. I assumed she was sick, and taking a nap or something. So I knocked on her bedroom door, no answer. Opened it quietly so I wouldn't wake her if she was asleep, and I found her ..." Brooke's voice began to crack at her last few words; she took a deep breath and continued on. "After that day I don't think I was ever quite myself. I went to live with Kevin in his apartment and he took legal custody of me. I quit playing volley ball, stopped talking to my friends, skipped my classes, I went from over-confidence to a hermit. The only thing that really helped me was writing. I hated everyone- I didn't want to get close to them because I was afraid they'd disappear, living a lonely life like that really got the better of me. I started using drugs to help cope with it all, I didn't know better. What does a teenager really know about life anyway? I was fifteen and addicted to meth, I was lucky to survive- and I almost didn't. I can't even count on one hand the number of suicide notes I wrote to Kevin. When he found one in my garbage can he lost it. He pulled me out of school and put me in a strict rehab and therapy session. I was there for three months trying to get my shit together. It was hard as hell getting back into the real world, but I kind of made this pact with myself to just forget the past and move forward. And that's what I've done."

Mark was happy that Brooke finally opened up to him, no doubt. He knew that it was a weight off her shoulders to let out some of that steam. He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her, "Is that why you left New York?" he asked. Brooke nodded. "I had to get out of there. I've never even visited my mother's grave. I guess I still hold a lot of anger in my heart towards her for leaving us the way she did. Is that selfish?" Mark sighed, "It is a little selfish. I'm sure it had nothing to do with you. Look at what happened to Craig. You said it yourself, you saw his eyes light up when he talked about his children. There was just too many other things going on in his head, and he was depressed. I really think you'd get a lot of closure if you'd visit your mother's grave, Brooke. Just being there, feeling her presence, and expressing how you feel." Brooke got chills at the thought of visiting her mother's grave. She didn't think that it would help, if anything she thought it would bring up hurtful memories. But maybe she'd go out on a limb and take Mark's word for it. Hell, it couldn't hurt. At this point Brooke was willing to do anything to cure the pain she was feeling in her heart, she couldn't live this way any longer.

Mark rubbed her back, "I'm going to New York next week, Rochester to be exact- for a show. That is about an hour away from Buffalo. I think you should come with me, and we'll take a little road trip. You can show me around, and visit your mother." Brooke sighed and rubbed her tired eyes, "Will you come with me?" she asked hesitantly. Mark smiled, "Of course I will." With that Brooke agreed, and fell into a deep sleep with her head on Mark's chest, listening to him breathe as she drifted off.

Mark's alarm clock went off at 9:00am. He groaned and rolled out of bed. He had to drive three hours to Dallas to do some promotional work for the WWE. Then it was back on the road to South Carolina for another show, and New York next week. Mark was happy Brooke had agreed to come to New York with him. He was looking forward to spending more time with her, and getting to know her better. The fact that she had opened up so much made him hopeful. He was beginning to think that perhaps something real was there, and maybe they could make this work. Mark smiled when he looked down at her sleeping peacefully. He brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead. He knew he'd be home later tonight, but he hoped that she wouldn't explode at Kevin for the previous night. Mark wouldn't be around to pick up the pieces. He packed a small bag of clothes to change into, and headed to his truck. It was indeed going to be a long day- better stop for coffee on the way.

Brooke awoke at 1:00pm. She never realized quite how mentally and physically tired and exhausted she was until she slept half the day away. Brooke's head hit the pillow in frustration. She reached for her cell phone on Mark's nightstand, and noticed she had three missed calls and a text message. "Figures, my phone was on silent." She mumbled to herself, irritated. Two missed calls from Kevin, one from Stephanie, and a text message from Mark. She rubbed her eyes and read Mark's message, "Thinking of you. Be good and be reasonable. Call me if you need anything, see you tonight." Brooke grinned, it was nice to know that Mark was concerned for her. Brooke called Stephanie back as she rolled out of bed and got dressed. "Girl, where the hell have you been? I've been worried sick and you've been ignoring my calls." Brooke shook her head, "What?" she asked confused. "I only had one missed call from you, and two from Kevin." Stephanie laughed, "Uh, no. Kevin called you like twenty times, and I called you, Oh, I'd say around fifty." She said sarcastically. Brooke looked at her phone and realized it wasn't on silent after all. She must have been so tired and in a daze that she kept pressing the "ignore" button on her phone as it rang. "I'm sorry Steph," Brooke said as she rubbed her face. "I've just been so tired lately, I must have been out of it." Stephanie smiled to herself, "Its okay. But I'm going to let you go so you can call your brother. I think you both have some talking to do. Give me a call later, okay?" Brooke nodded, "Will do."

Brooke flipped her phone shut and sighed. She paced back and forth for a minute before deciding to send Kevin a text message, it read- "Still heated, and I don't want to talk about this over the phone. Where and when can we meet up?" Brooke bit her finger nail as she sent it. She figured she'd head home and wait to talk to Kevin. She had a lot to say about his antics last night, and it wasn't going to be pretty. She grabbed her belongings and locked up Mark's house before heading back to her own. She threw her keys on her kitchen table as she heard her phone beep in her pocket. She opened it and read Kevin's response, "I'll meet you at your place in half an hour. Okay?" Brooke grinned as she sent back a simple, "K", and headed upstairs to take a shower. This out to be a classic brother and sister fight.

Brooke began blow drying her long hair as she heard her door bell ring, and her heart dropped. Suddenly she became nervous to confront her own flesh and blood. She was afraid one of them would take it too far, and she felt so betrayed that she almost didn't want to talk about it at all. She walked downstairs and opened the door to find Kevin, dressed in all black and wearing sunglasses. She folded her arms over her chest and stared at him angrily, "What? Are you going to a fucking funeral?" Brooke asked looking at his outfit. "Feels like it." Kevin shot back as he stepped in the doorway. Brooke rolled her eyes and closed the door as she followed him into the living room. Kevin sat on the couch, and Brooke plopped onto the chair next to it. They stared at one another for an awkward minute, until Brooke broke the silence. "Care to explain yourself?" She asked, fire fuming in her voice. Kevin knew she was pissed. The two siblings knew each other pretty damn well, and Kevin knew he was in for a battle. This time he really fucked up. Kevin sighed as he looked at her, "First off, I want to apologize- but not for telling Mark about our mother. I want to apologize for the after effects you had to deal with when it was said." Brooke slanted her eyes in anger, "Okay, first off on this side- take your fucking sunglasses off you're in the house." Kevin shook his head and violently took off his sunglasses as he threw them on the coffee table. Brooke chuckled, "real mature." She mumbled. Kevin leaned forward, "Brooke, get over it. It is not just your dirty laundry that I laid out on the table. It's my fucking past too. It's my mother. You're my sister. If I make the choice to tell someone about my past, then that's my problem. Just because it has to do with you doesn-"

"Excuse me!" Brooke interrupted. "Telling the man I've been seeing that I found my mother with her head blown off and that I went into drug therapy and rehab is not in your jurisdiction. If you want to tell people that your mother committed suicide, how, why, where, and when- that's fucking fine. But you did air all my dirty laundry to Mark and don't sit there and pretend that you didn't. It's not okay what you said." Kevin put his head down, "Alright, I was drinking, Brooke. I didn't mean to talk about the drugs. It slipped out, I was pissed off." Brooke cracked her knuckles, a nervous habit of hers, and bit her lip. "Do you know how to _think_ before you speak?" Brooke asked, still angry. "Did you not _think_ that I wouldn't find out the things you said? Did you not _think_ that I wouldn't have to deal with explaining myself to Mark after? Did you not _think_ that he'd fucking _think_ that I was a crazy lunatic? Or did you just not fucking think at all?" Brooke's voice got louder as she went on, "It is not your, **MOTHER FUCKING JOB**, to tell someone that I am talking to, about **MY MOTHER FUCKING** life!" She boomed, "How can I make myself any more **MOTHER FUCKING CLEAR**? Did I say _MOTHER_ enough for you to understand that talking about **OUR** mother is not a smart thing for you to do? We aren't that family that gathers around the Christmas tree every year in our perfect holiday sweaters with our perfect fucking family and open all the presents on a beautiful fucking snowy day. Because if we were that family you could blab all you want about them, but we are not. I was supposed to tell Mark about her, not you. So please, please, I'm begging you, to use the brain that you were given, and THINK before you speak."

Brooke then stood up and went into the kitchen for a bottle of water. She could feel her blood boiling. She always had a bit of a sailor mouth, but from what she can recall that was the most she ever cursed when discussing a topic. 'If mom was alive to witness this one, she'd be washing my mouth out with soap', Brooke thought as she sipped her water. Kevin walked into the kitchen and leaned over the counter. "Alright, I'm sorry. I get the picture. If you want some time to cool off I'll go, you can call me some other time?" Brooke nodded, not looking at him. Kevin sighed, "I'm leaving town tomorrow, back on the road." Kevin said as he tapped his fingers on the counter, waiting for some type of response from Brooke. She sipped her water bottle again as she continued to ignore his efforts. Kevin stood up, "Well, call me when you're cooled off then." He said as he turned and headed out the door. Brooke listened to his car start up, and watched out the window as he drove away.

She let out a deep sigh of relief. She picked up her phone and dialed Mark's number almost immediately. It rang a couple of times until she heard a loud, "Hello?" Brooke could tell that Mark was doing promotional work from all the loud noise and people in the background. "I talked to Kevin." She simply stated. "How'd it go?" Mark asked, trying to raise his voice over the crowd of people. "Let's just say I wasn't good or reasonable." Mark laughed on the other end, "Never taking my advice are you?" Brooke smiled, "I guess not, huh?" Mark let out a deep breath, "Alright sweetie. Let me finish up here, and I'll talk to you about it when I get home okay? Should be here for about another hour or two, then I have a long drive home ahead of me. I'll give you a call when I'm on my way." Brooke grinned, "Don't work too hard." She said sarcastically. "You got it."


	14. Chapter 14 :: You're Beautiful This Way

**This next chapter isn't really that important. It does show Mark and Brooke's playful side- and how the two are becoming more comfortable together. There is SEXUAL CONTENT, So I'd skip it if that kind of stuff offends you. ;) Enjoy. **

Chapter Fourteen

Mark arrived home after a long day of work. He was planning on going to Brooke's place to visit, but he still had so much packing to do yet, and was heading to the airport early tomorrow for South Carolina. He called Brooke, and got no answer. He then sent her a text message explaining his situation, and that she was welcome to come over to his place for a while. Mark began packing his suitcase for the following couple of days. Mark was immune to packing, he had a system down. When you live out of your suitcase for so many years, it's easy to remember what to pack. He found that he finished up rather quick, and was surprised to hear a knock on his door. He wondered downstairs and found Brooke standing on his doorstep, grinning at him.

"Well hello my little trouble maker. What took you so long?" He asked as she made her way inside. "Oh, nothing. I had a little surprise set up for a certain someone who was supposed to meet me at my place tonight but then decided he had other things to tend to. So I had to put the surprise away before heading over." Mark smiled at her, "Well where is my surprise? You didn't bring it with you?" He asked as he followed her to the living room. She was twirling her coat straps around sarcastically and turned to look at him, "Maybe I did, and maybe I didn't." Mark folded his arms over his chest and chuckled at her, "Alright I know this game. I don't want the surprise then, how about that?" He said as her mouth dropped. "Well fine then, I'll just leave." She said playfully as she headed towards the door. Mark laughed and reached for her. He grabbed her by her waist and pulled her towards him. She was wearing a long off-white 'Guess' jacket which covered her outfit, and a pair of black high heels. Her long dark hair flowed over her shoulders, and her Smokey eyes stared a hole through him. She was so incredibly sexy, and combination of her looks and perfume had overtaken all of his senses. Mark had completely forgotten all about the to-do list he had in his head. "Okay, okay, I changed my mind. What is my surprise?" He cooed at her. Brooke smiled and pushed him away, "Well, I don't think I want to give it to you anymore. I mean, after the way you just acted I don't think you deserve it."

Mark stepped closed to her and kissed the gape of her neck and up to her ear, "What can I do to change your mind?" he whispered. His voice sent chills down her spine, God she missed this- and it's only been a couple of hours since she last felt his touch. Brooke leaned back and smiled at him, "Okay. You wait down here. Give me five minutes and you can have your surprise." Brooke grabbed her purse and a brown paper shopping bag that she brought with her and headed upstairs. Mark lightly laughed as he wondered what she had up her sleeve. Clearly she was trying to forget all about last night since she hadn't mentioned it once, and she was back to her normal, sarcastic, and playful sexy self. The girl Mark knew, and the girl he was beginning to fall for.

Mark could hear her rumbling around upstairs, and his curiosity was beginning to get the better of him. He started slowly creeping up the stairs and noticed that she was in his bedroom. "I can hear your big ass coming up the stairs! Don't you dare move a muscle!" Brooke shouted through the doorway. Mark laughed, "Touché little girl. How much longer do I have to wait?" he asked. "As long as I say you do. Don't move!" Mark's eyebrows raised, "Feisty." He mumbled under his breath. Mark sat at the top stair and waited for her to finish whatever the hell it was she was doing in there. She peeked her head through the door and giggled, "Okay- come here." She said as she curled her index finger towards him. Mark stood up and made his way to the bedroom. He couldn't help but laugh at what he saw. Brooke had candles lit everywhere, and rose petals placed on the floor and on his bed. She had placed something else on the bed as well, he couldn't quite tell just what it was yet- but he was sure he'd find out. He looked at her and his smile grew wider, "What's all this for?" he asked with laughter in his voice. Brooke chuckled, "I knew you had a long hard day. So I wanted you to have a relaxing and stress free night before you leave tomorrow." Brooke walked over towards the bed, still wearing her coat and high heels. "Look what I bought," she said playfully as she picked up the small items on the bed. Mark grinned, "What are they?" he asked.

"Edible pens! You can write on skin with them and then lick it off. I have chocolate and strawberry flavors." She said through her laughter. Mark chuckled, "Very creative baby, thank you." Brooke stepped back, "But that's not your only surprise." She said as she twirled around straps on her jacket once again. Mark laughed and sat on the bed, "I had a feeling you were hiding something under there." Brooke grinned, "Was I that obvious?" she asked. Mark nodded and winked at her, "But I don't have a problem with it either way," he said as he stared at her. She slowly unbuttoned her coat and slid it off. She was wearing black lingerie, a lace bra and thong with knee high fishnets, along with the heels. Mark's jaw hit the floor. Her body was perfect, and even though he'd seen it in full before- the sight of her now was driving him crazy. She tossed her jacket to the floor and smiled as she did a little twirl, "Come get your present baby." She said playfully, and Mark wasted no time.

He grabbed her and pulled her onto his lap as their tongues tangled together almost immediately. He grabbed her ass and forced her legs to straddle him, as he quickly pulled his shirt over his head- his hands back on her skin instantly. She grabbed the back of his head and deepened the kiss as they both fell back onto the bed, laughing as they felt the rose petals on their bodies. "You're too much," he whispered as he continued to kiss her. Brooke sat up and smiled as she grabbed the pens sitting next to them, "I think we could have some fun", she said as she shook them playfully and grinned at him. "I think you're right." Brooke reached for his belt and unzipped his pants. She stood up and slipped his jeans off and tossed them to the floor, leaving him in just his boxers, her in her lingerie still. She handed him one of the pens and laid back onto the bed, pulling him on top of her. "Have at it," she said with a grin. Mark smiled and sat up. He looked at the pen for a moment, chocolate flavored, and decided why the hell not? He'd never done anything like this before, usually he was just a "fuck and go" type of guy. But a little foreplay never hurt anyone. He pulled the cap off the pen and squeezed it, as chocolate came out. He chuckled, "And you're sure this is edible?" Brooke laughed, "No, I'm trying to poison you so I can use you on my own time."

"Fair enough." Mark said as he leaned down to her belly. He began drawing on her stomach and Brooke laughed at the sensation of it. When she tried to peek at what he was drawing he playfully pushed her back down, "Don't look at it! I'm not done yet!" Brooke laughed, "Are we in kindergarten?" Mark smiled as he attempted to block her view and continued drawing. After a minute he looked up at her- "Okay I'm done". Brooke looked down and saw smiley faced stick figures, with a little house and a sun in the background. She smiled, "Okay, what is this a mirage?" Mark laughed, "That one is you, and that's me. This is the house in the background with the sun- because you make the sun shine for me every day. See? I'm smiling in the picture", he said pointing to the larger stick figure. "Aww, how cute." Brooke said jokingly, trying to hold in her laughter. "Uh-oh," Mark said. "What?" Brooke asked. "I don't know, something's happening. It's starting to get cloudy…" He said as he began to lick the sun off her stomach. Brooke couldn't hold it in any longer and let out a burst of laughter. "Brooke, this is serious. Looks like some sort of storm is coming in- it's wiping me away"- he said as he smeared one of the stick figures with his finger. "Oh, no! What do we do?" Brooke asked trying to sound concerned. "I don't know, but it's wiping the house away too- looks like you're the last one standing. I think it's a… a…" suddenly Mark leaned down and blew a huge burst of air onto her stomach, causing an enormously loud fart noise to fill the room. "Earthquake!" He yelled as he fell back onto the bed laughing. Brooke chuckled at him and rolled her eyes. "Give me those!" she said as she took the pens and tossed them across the room. "You managed to turn something sexy into pre-school story time." She said through her laughter. She'd never seen Mark laugh like that, and she assumed it was because he'd had a long day and was over-worked and tired.

Mark leaned over and made his way back down her stomach as he licked, kissed, and sucked the remaining chocolate off her gently and slowly. He came back up to her mouth and flicked her lips with his tongue, wanting entry. Brooke smiled and pulled his mouth to hers, sucking his tongue and positioning him between her legs. "Mmm, you taste amazing", he said with a husky voice as he slipped his fingers into her underwear, slowly massaging her clit. Brooke moaned and leaned her head back as she gripped his shoulders. She reached down into his boxers and began rubbing his fully hard shaft up and down with her fingers. She then lightly gripped it with one hand and began moving up and down at pace with his thrusting fingers. He slowly slid one inside of her, feeling how hot and wet she was, and then entered a second finger into her heat. Her hips moved with him as well, and she moaned out in pleasure. "I want you so bad," she whispered into his ear.

Mark wouldn't deny her, he'd had enough teasing from last time. He unhooked her bra, and slid her underwear off swiftly. She reached for his boxers and pulled them off, retrieving his mouth once they were on the floor. She grabbed his cock again and began rubbing the head of his shaft up and down her wet slit, making Mark practically beg for entry. She lifted her hips up and allowed him to slide into her half way, before pulling out again- grinning as she did so. She had a thing for teasing him, and herself at the same time. It just made them want each other more. She did this about three times until Mark grabbed her arms and held them over her head. In one hard thrust he was completely inside her, pounding into her getting as deep as her body would allow him. "Oh God!" Brooke yelled out as she wrapped her legs around his waist and met him thrust for thrust with her hips. She dug her nails into his back and he grabbed her waist and held her steady- getting deeper and deeper. He wanted more of her, all of her. "Turn around for me baby, I need to have more of you", he grunted and Brooke obliged. She turned onto her stomach and Mark lifted her hips as he entered her doggy style. She arched her back allowing him deeper entry, and he thrusted his shaft into her hungrily. Brooke gripped the sheets to try and steady herself as she moaned out in pleasure. She could feel herself coming at this angle, he was hitting her g-spot each time he moved in and out of her. Mark felt her muscles tighten around his cock and he knew she was ready to cum. "Mark, don't stop! Harder…" she yelled out as he picked up the pace, about to lose it himself. Brooke lost herself in uncontrollable pleasure as she let it take over her. The sight of it was enough to keep Mark orgasming for years, as he spilled his seed deep inside her. Brooke collapsed on the bed, ready to pass out right there and then.

They were both breathing heavily, and Mark brushed a few rose petals off of Brooke's sticky stomach from the chocolate. He laughed at her, "You're the sexiest woman on this planet." Brooke smiled, as she brushed his cheek with her thumb. His glistening and flustered face only made her smile grow wider, "You're beautiful this way." She whispered as she kissed his forehead and pulled the covers around them. Mark knew he had to get up early and hit the road tomorrow, and he was dreading leaving her for a week. He pulled her in his arms, and she snuggled into his chest. If only there was a way to make this feeling last longer.


	15. Chapter 15 :: Fade To Black

Chapter Fifteen

Mark awoke at 6:00am sharp. He rubbed his tired eyes and rolled over to find Brooke sleeping peacefully beside him. He was upset to leave her this week, more so then he'd ever been to leave her side. He was growing close to her, and it became harder and harder to be away from her the more time they spent together. He was becoming too comfortable around her, and he wasn't so sure if that was a good thing, or a bad thing. He'd remembered Brooke telling him that she wasn't looking for anything serious, but had she changed her mind?

Mark rolled out of bed and threw on a pair of jeans and a black Harley shirt. He wrapped a bandana around his head and placed his sunglasses in his pocket for later. He walked over to where Brooke was sleeping, and gently placed a kiss on her forehead. Brooke stirred slightly, but didn't wake up. Mark smiled at her, he was falling for this girl- he simply couldn't help it. He turned away from her and grabbed his suit case as he headed down the stairs. He made himself a cup of coffee and put it in a Styrofoam cup for the road. Just as he was heading out, he heard someone call his name. He turned around to see Brooke grinning at him from the top of the staircase. "You didn't think you could just leave without a kiss did you?" She said chuckling as she pranced down the stairs. She ran up to him and jumped into his arms, placing a kiss on his lips. Mark laughed, "Well I didn't want to wake you. But thank you, I needed that to hold me over for this week." Brooke smiled and rubbed her nose on his nose, "See you in New York."

A few days had passed and Brooke was bored out of her mind. She had a photo shoot and runway show lined up to keep her busy, but she was lonely and seriously missing her friends. Stephanie and Mark were in South Carolina for a show, and Kevin was off doing God knows what with WCW. She hadn't fully patched things up with Kevin, but she was at least talking to him here and there- which was a sure sign of progress in Kevin's eyes. Kevin still had his reservations about Mark, and Brooke could sense it. But she was sure that Mark would prove himself, and Kevin would eventually drop the subject. Brooke couldn't wait to hop on the plane and fly to New York. Even though she was nervous to be back in Buffalo, she was excited to show Mark around her home city- and just plain excited to see him in general. Mark called her every night before bed, and texted her occasionally throughout the day. Brooke smiled to herself, things were really moving along. She could only hope that this progress would continue.

Finally, the morning had arrived. Brooke anxiously hopped out of bed and got her remaining things together. She threw on her Ed-hardy trucker hat and a sweat suit, and headed to the airport. It was a long flight to New York, but Brooke's thoughts were elsewhere. She couldn't wait to see her friends, but she was also thinking about seeing her mother. The idea was burned into her head the past couple of days, and she was feeling anxiety about the day approaching quickly. The WWE had a show in Rochester tonight, but they'd already been there for a day doing promotional work. Then everyone was off for two days, so Mark, Stephanie, and Paul decided to take a trip to Buffalo for a day before flying back to Texas.

Once Brooke arrived in Rochester, she called Stephanie to pick her up from the airport. "Yay!" Stephanie called upon seeing her friend. The two girls laughed as the embraced one another. "I'm so happy you're here girl, I've missed you!" Brooke chuckled, "Same here. I've been bored out of my mind with you guys being gone." Stephanie grabbed one of Brooke's smaller bags, and led her to the rental car. "Let's get going, your man misses you too." Stephanie said as she popped her trunk and helped place Brooke's bags in it. Brooke laughed, "Aww, how nice."

Stephanie drove to the arena and the girls chatted about the week's events. Stephanie had told Brooke about a huge fight that she had gotten into with Paul. They've both been stressed out due to Vince not approving of their relationship, and it was starting to take its tole. "Kevin and Ashley broke up," Brooke mentioned out of the blue. "Really? I had a feeling that wouldn't last long; she didn't seem like Kevin's type." Stephanie said, keeping her eyes on the road. Brooke smiled, "Something bothering you?" Brooke asked as she noticed Stephanie getting tense. "Oh, no. Brooke- it's been years I mean, I don't even know who Kevin is anymore. I guess I'll always love him, you know? He was my first… everything." Stephanie's eyes teared up a bit, but she quickly blinked them away and smiled. "I'll be fine," she said reassuringly. Brooke smiled weakly at her friend, she knew this was a difficult time for Stephanie- and the stress was getting to her.

The girls arrived at the arena a short drive after. Brooke left her suitcase in Stephanie's rental car, since they'd be heading to the hotel shortly. Brooke just wanted to swing by to see Mark, even though he was practicing. The girls walked to the ring in the arena, surrounded by empty chairs and a few members of the backstage crew putting the final touches on everything for the show tonight. Mark and Paul had a match tonight, the main event. They were in a feud together, so they were running through the match and discussing what was moves were going be done. Brooke and Stephanie watched as the two men threw each other around in the ring. After giving Paul a "Last Ride", the practice match was over. "Alright man, take ten then we'll run through some final touches." Mark said as he helped Paul up, "Sounds good." Paul replied. Brooke smiled as she locked eyes with Mark, "Hey there pretty girl, how are you?" Mark asked motioning for Brooke to come to the ring. Brooke came closer and Mark leaned down over the ropes, taking Brooke's hands and literally hoisting her up to the ring side. He then locked lips with her and lifted her over the top rope until the two were standing in the middle of the ring together. A chorus of "ooooo's" erupted through the empty arena from some of the backstage workers. Brooke smiled and laughed. "Get back to work! Nothing to see here," Mark yelled, jokingly. He then grinned at her and placed a gentle kiss on her lips, "How's my girl been?" he asked. Brooke's smile grew wider, "Missing you." She said as she kissed him once again. "I've missed you too baby."

"Hey! Deadman!" Paul called from ring side. Mark turned and caught a bottle of water that Paul threw him. "Hurry it up love birds, I want to put the final touches on this match then we can go grab lunch and you two can make-out all you want." Paul said as he climbed through the ropes. "Yeah yeah," Mark said as he held the bottom rope down, making it easier for Brooke to crawl through. "What a gentleman. Make sure you go easy on me too, honey" Paul said as he laughed and sipped his water. Mark slapped the water bottle out of his hand, "You wish," Mark shot back as the two continued to toss each other around the ring. Stephanie laughed, "You know sometimes, I wonder if they're wrestling for show or if they're wrestling for real." Brooke shrugged and watched the men finish their match.

After the match, the four went to grab lunch. Paul didn't stay long, because he had a meeting with Vince to attend. Stephanie was a nervous wreck upon hearing about the meeting, she assumed it had to do with their growing relationship. After Paul left the table, Stephanie let out a deep sigh. "Guys I'm fucking freaking out. What if my dad threatens his job? What do we do?" Brooke reached over the table and placed her hand over Stephanie's, "It's going to be okay. Don't jump to conclusions just wait and see what he says." Stephanie nodded, "I know. I'm just thinking the worse at this point." Brooke nodded, "I know you are. Just breathe, and we'll figure it out once we hear the verdict." Mark smiled at the two of girls, he knew that Paul and Stephanie had real feelings for one another- but he didn't want to get involved when he felt it wasn't his place. He'd just give advice when it was asked of him, he felt that was the right thing to do. "I'll be right back," Brooke started, "I'm going to go to the bathroom real quick." Brooke stood up and headed out the café area and went on yet another quest to find a bathroom. "Damn these ridiculously huge places should just have a bathroom at every corner," Brooke mumbled to herself as she twisted and winded down numerous hallways trying to find a restroom. Suddenly she was stopped short when a massive hand came around her mouth and violently pulled her into a dark corridor. The large man then shoved her against the wall, as her head bounced off the tiles- and the world faded to black.


	16. Chapter 16 :: Betrayal

Chapter Sixteen

Brooke slowly opened her eyes with a massive head ache. Wherever she was, it was dark- and her eyes were trying to adjust. Brooke reached her hand up to her head where it had been hurting, and a warm substance met her touch. She pulled her fingers back to view blood upon them, and she then remembered what had happened. Brooke shot up quickly and was then pushed back down by the same pair of hands which had gotten her here in the first place. "Shhh, quiet down" a familiar voice said. Brooke's vision was still fuzzy, but she was sure her eyes weren't deceiving her. It was Paul. Brooke's eyes widened and turned to anger as she struggled to get out of his grasp. Paul violently lifted her by her shoulders and pushed her against the wall once more. "Brooke, calm the fuck down. I didn't mean to knock you out, okay? I just want to talk." Paul removed his hand from her mouth, smearing her lipstick as he did so. He then pressed his lips harshly against hers, and Brooke let out a light scream as he did so. She struggled to push him away, but this massive man was not going anywhere. Her tiny stature could barely get him to budge. "Paul, what the fuck is wrong with you?" Brooke screamed as she turned her head away from him.

"Nothing is wrong with me. Don't act like you don't like it, Brooke. I can see the way that you look at me. And let's face it; the thought of one of my good friend's fucking the girl of my dreams was eating me up every day- I had to do something about it." Brooke kneed Paul hard in the groin and Paul slapped her across the face out of instinct. Brooke's mouth shot open, "And this is what you fucking plan to do about it? Beat the shit out of me?" Brooke asked, shocked. This couldn't be the man that Stephanie was falling for, and the man she thought was her friend. "I wouldn't have to beat the shit out of you if you'd fucking cooperate." Brooke spit at him, "Fuck you!" She yelled as Paul punched her in the stomach, causing her to double over in pain. "Well, since you're down there," Paul said as he began to unzip his pants. Brooke met her match, she could struggle all she wanted, but how could she escape the grasp of this massive wrestler? Paul grabbed her hair and pulled her head back, forcing her to look at him. "Take a good look, sweetie, because I'm your dream man. Just do what I fucking tell you to do, and you'll escape this without another hair harmed on your precious body." He then ripped her shirt open and continued to pull his pants down.

"What the fuck is going on here?" Mark yelled as Stephanie stood behind him, both their mouths wide open at the sight. "Shit," Paul mumbled as he quickly pulled his pants up and lifted Brooke to her feet. Brooke's eyes filled with tears as she slid back down to the floor, sobbing. "Look Mark, Stephanie, we were going to tell you. I'm sorry. She's just upset that you had to find out this way." Paul said as he looked down at Brooke crying uncontrollably on the cement floor. Mark's eyes were fuming with anger. How could she do this to him? How could Paul do this? What about Stephanie? Mark shunned all the thoughts in his head and went wild, he lunged at Paul and grabbed him by the throat as he started pounding away at him. Paul split his lip open and Mark threw him to the floor, kicking him in the gut as he was down. "Fuck you man! Fuck you both!" Mark boomed as he walked over to Brooke. Mark was disgusted as he looked down at her on the floor, her shirt was ripped open, hair a mess, and make-up smeared all over her face. So this is what she really was? Nothing but another backstabbing whore. Mark leaned down to her level as he grabbed her chin and forced Brooke to look into his eyes, the two were nose to nose. "I want nothing to fucking do with you. Stay the hell away from me. I thought you were fucking different- you disgust me!" He yelled as he stood back up and headed out the way he entered. Brooke couldn't stay a word, how could she explain herself when it looks as if she was caught red handed? Brooke's eyes welled up with a new batch of tears as she looked up at a disappointed Stephanie, staring her down in the doorway. The two locked eyes for a moment, and Stephanie turned around and walked away.

Brooke looked over at Paul, who was moaning on the floor and reeling in pain. She quickly rolled over and stood on her feet, trying desperately to catch her breath and get the hell out of there. Paul began to stir on the floor, and realized Brooke was making a break for it. He didn't want her to blow his cover- if Vince found out what he had done he'd be fired for sure. Paul quickly stood up and grabbed Brooke by her hair and pulled her backwards towards the ground. Brooke fell hard and hit her head once more, as Paul began stomping the living hell out of her. She whimpered out in pain, hoping the someone would hear her quiet cries. She could barley breath, let alone call for help. Brooke was sure that Paul was going to kill her if she didn't do something, this man has seriously lost his mind. Paul leaned down and punched Brooke in the head repeatedly, "If you fucking tell anyone about this I'll kill you bitch. This was your fault, you came on to me. Just remember that- you did this!" Paul quickly stood up and raced out of the corridor. Brooke turned around and spit blood from her mouth as she collapsed to the floor.

Mark was heated in his dressing room. He had a match with Paul in just two hours and wasn't sure he could resist beating the living shit out of him for real. Scott Hall opened the door to find Mark pacing like a rabid animal. "Mark, what the fuck happened? Stephanie is crying in her dressing room and won't speak to anyone, Brooke is missing, and Paul looks like he just got in a damn car accident. All the guys are starting to talk backstage man, mind telling me what the hell is going on?" Mark looked up at Scott with fire in his eyes, "What's going on? I'll tell you what the hell is going on. Brooke is a fucking slut and has been hooking up with Paul behind my fucking back! So the man got what he deserved." Mark yelled as he began pacing once again. Scott shook his head, "What? Brooke hooked up with Paul?" This didn't sound right to Scott. Brooke had always told him how she thought something was a bit off with Paul, and sometimes he made her nervous. "That don't sound right man…" Scott said trying to calm Mark down. "I fucking saw them, with my own eyes." Mark boomed at him. "Where did you see them?" Scott asked, trying to get some answers. "In a corridor back by the equipment area. Brooke said she was going to the bathroom and was gone for twenty minutes before Stephanie and I decided to go looking for her. It took us forty-five minutes to find them- God only knows what the hell they were doing." This didn't sit right with Scott. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach, this wasn't adding up. Scott was surprised that Mark didn't sense it- he must have been so angry with what he saw.

"Alright man, just calm down. I'll go check things out. Get ready for your match alright big dog?" Scott had to see this for himself. He headed to the equipment area of the arena and looked for Brooke. He wasn't sure if he'd find her, but he assumed it was the best place to start looking for her since it was where she'd last been seen. Scott was concerned, he was good friend's with Kevin, and he didn't want anything happening to Brooke- not on his watch. Scott winded around corners and called Brooke's name. No sign of her. He then turned down a small dark corridor, and it dawned on him that this may be the spot Mark was talking about. He ran down the end of the hallway and turned to see Brooke passed out on the cement floor, blood spilling from her mouth. "Jesus Christ!" Scott yelled as he pulled his jacket off and wrapped it around Brooke's ripped clothing. "Brooke? Brooke… what the fuck?" Scott lifted her in his arms and raced down the hallway, looking for a medic or anyone who could help him.

Suddenly he saw Jeff Hardy and Lita walking down the hall, "Jeff! Call 911 man, now!" Scott yelled as he raced towards them. "Oh my God, Brooke! What the fuck happened to her?" Lita asked as she brushed Brooke's knotted hair out of her face. "I don't know I found her like this. But I have a feeling it has something to do with Paul." Jeff was already on the phone with the paramedics, "Alright man, we gotta get her as close to a main door as possible- an ambulance is on their way. Is she breathing?" Jeff asked. Lita nodded, "Yes, but it's really muffled. Hold her up straight so she doesn't choke on the blood!" Scott sat her up straight and Jeff came around the other side. Together the two men raced down the hallway with Brooke in their arms, sitting in the upright position.

As they got closer to the backstage door, security called on site medics to look at her while they waited for the ambulance. They put an oxygen mask on Brooke and tried to suction some of the blood and saliva from her mouth to clear her airways. Brooke hadn't stirred once, she was out cold. "She lost a lot of blood man, it was everywhere in there…" Scott said as he tangled his hand through his hair. Lita patted Scott on the shoulder, "She's going to be okay, Scott. Just thank God you found her when you did." Finally the ambulance arrived and gently rolled Brooke onto the gurney. Once in the ambulance they hooked her up to IVs and raced her to a near-by hospital. Scott, Jeff, and Lita watched as the ambulance drove off. "Should we tell Mark?" Lita asked. Scott shook his head, "Maybe we should wait until he finishes his match with Paul. Brooke is in good hands now". Jeff looked over at the two of them, "You know how it is back here. Some of the guys may have seen Brooke, it's going to spread like wildfire. I think we should tell Mark now before someone else does." Scott once again shook his head, "I want to see Mark kill Paul out there. That mother fucker did that to her." Lita smiled, "Well if we tell Mark what really happened then he'll really kill Paul." Scott chuckled, "True. But not in the ring. If we tell Mark he's out of here. He'll be at the hospital in a second. I think it's best if we let him finish his match- they are the main event. I'll let Vince know." With that all three agreed, it was best if Vince and Stephanie knew what had happened right away.


	17. Chapter 17 :: Truth Revealed

Chapter Seventeen

Stephanie broke down in tears after Scott told her what he'd found. Stephanie knew that something wasn't right, Brooke would never betray her like that. Stephanie was disgusted with Paul, and she was furious. How could he do that to her best friend? Stephanie wanted so badly to tell Mark the truth, but Vince needed him to be here for the main event. Stephanie eventually agreed against her will to not tell Mark what happened, but only if she could go to the hospital and not escort Paul to the ring tonight. Vince agreed on that one, Stephanie didn't need to be out there today- and Vince had a few choice words for Paul after this match.

Mark was warming up by the curtain as Paul came up a few feet behind him. They were waiting for their entrance music to begin while stretching. Mark caught Paul's eye and saw regret and guilt behind them. 'Yeah, you're really going to regret it after this', Mark thought to himself. Paul had a bad feeling in his gut, and was beginning to think that what he'd done had really fucked him over. He should have checked on Brooke before he came out here, she was bleeding pretty bad- what if he'd killed her? Paul was more concerned about himself and what was in his best interest then fucking anyone else over. Once Mark's theme music hit, he made his way out to the ring first. Mark couldn't wait to let his frustration out on Paul's face- this was going to be a "slobber knocker" as J.R puts it.

Paul made his way out to the ring next. And Mark was anxiously waiting for him. The second that Paul entered the ring Mark's fist was to his nose. But this was no wrestling match, this was an all out fight and Paul was battling for his life. Mark gave Paul no chance to retaliate, his fists pounding into Paul's face- blood began pouring from his nose and the cut on his lip was immediately re-opened. Jim Ross and Jerry the Kind Lawler sat at ringside speechless- this wasn't the way that the match was suppose to go, that is for sure. Vince was watching backstage and decided to send more officials out to the ring to break it up. As much as Vince was enjoying this, he was liable. The crowd was going crazy, cheering and screaming in pleasure- thinking that this was all part of the plot. A few wrestlers including Scott Hall, and some officials quickly raced to the ring, and it took all of their strength to pull Mark off of Paul. The crowd booed as Mark was dragged from the ring, struggling viciously to get another piece of Triple H, "The Game".

As they dragged Mark backstage- Scott managed to push him to the ground, "Quit man! Enough! It's over!" Scott yelled as Mark continued to have his heart set on getting back to the ring. "Mark, we need to talk, calm the fuck down!" Vince yelled from behind them. Mark looked up to see his boss, thinking he was in deep shit for messing up the main event- he quickly calmed down and stood to his feet. "Mark," Vince started, not knowing how to break the news. "Brooke is in the hospital." Mark's heart dropped. Sure he was angry with her, but he still cared about her immensely, and he couldn't help that. Scott looked over at him, "Mark, Brooke didn't cheat on you man. Paul tried to rape her. At least that is what we're guessing- no conclusions just yet. I found her where you said you last saw her, she was knocked out completely and bleeding. I think it was Paul who did it to her."

Of course. How could he be so blind? Mark was furious, "Why didn't you fucking tell me earlier?" Mark asked stepping towards the men. "Mark, calm down. We needed you here for the main event, Stephanie is at the hospital with Brooke she said she'd call if it was serious." Vince said as he backed away from the angry man. "Damn it!" Mark shouted as he punched a nearby venting machine, cracking the plastic-like glass as he did so. Mark raced towards the parking garage to his rental car, Scott was in hot pursuit. "Mark! Wait up man, I'm coming with you." Scott called from behind him. Mark looked back with anger in his eyes. "Get in." Mark said sternly as the two men hopped into the car, and Mark sped out of the parking garage.

The ride was silent, too much was going on in Mark's head- and Scott was wise enough to keep his mouth shut. Mark was furious at himself. How could he have misjudged that situation? Her crying on the floor, her shirt ripped open, and he'd left her there with that son-of-a-bitch. Regardless of the fact that Mark had beaten the shit out of Paul before he left, that hadn't stopped Paul from nearly killing Brooke- or what if he did? What if the last thing Mark said to Brooke was to stay away from him? Mark's mind was racing, and so was his car. They quickly arrived at the hospital and Mark raced towards the door. Stephanie was in the lobby as Mark came in, and she ran up to him and embraced him in a hug as she broke down in tears. Mark held her tight and rubbed her back as she let out her pent-up cry. "I'm going to kill him… it's over, it's fucking over!" Stephanie yelled through her tears. "How could I let him do this to her? Why didn't I figure it out?" Mark pulled her back and looked into her eyes, "We're going to fix this, Steph." Mark said.

Stephanie shook her head, "Mark she has two broken ribs and internal bleeding. She had to get stitches on the inside of her lip and her head was cut up pretty bad- not bad enough for stitches thank god. But she does have a minor concussion and hasn't woken up yet." Mark felt sick to his stomach upon hearing this, how could he let someone do this to her? "Can I see her?" Mark asked. Stephanie shrugged, "I don't know. They let me in there but only for five minutes. They're working on her and waiting to see if she needs surgery." Mark's heart sank into his stomach. He rubbed his hands through his hair in frustration. He felt completely helpless.

Just then the doctor emerged from the double doors. He sighs as he looks at the group. "Well, I have some good news, and some bad news…" the doctor starts. He looks over at Mark, "I'm sorry I don't think we've met yet. Are you Ms. Fox's husband?" Mark sighed, "No, her boyfriend. Mark Calaway," Mark stated as he extended a hand for the doctor, "Dr. Prater", the doctor says as he shakes Mark's hand. "Well, I'm glad you're all here. Does Ms. Fox have any other family members? Parents? Siblings?" Dr. Prater asks as he looks at some of his paper work. Stephanie shook her head, "No her father is never around and her mother is deceased. She does have a brother though, I've called him already he'll be here tomorrow." Mark's head shot towards Stephanie. Great. If Kevin didn't have his reservations about Mark before, this would surely do it. Kevin had good right to be pissed this time, though. Mark was fuming at himself, he could only imagine what Kevin would have to say about it.

"Well then, I'll give you the good news first. Good news is surgery won't be required. The internal bleeding will just cause some bruising- all her airways are open and blood is circulating efficiently. She has a strong pulse and good blood pressure. The bad news is she's still unconscious. It looks like the first hit she took caused her to hit her head awkwardly, and every hit after that just caused more problems. She's basically slipped into a coma." Stephanie gasped when she heard the word 'coma', and her grip on Mark's hang tightened. "Do you know if she'll… wake up?" Scott asks, sounding concerned. Dr. Prater shakes his head, "We don't know. We'll just keep her here, under observation- with the hope that she does." Mark takes a breath, "Can I see her?" he asks. The doctor nods, "I'll take you to her."

Dr. Prater leads the group through a series of hallways and doors, until they end up at one in the intensive care unit. Mark takes a deep breath and walks into the dark room behind the doctor. There in front of them lays Brooke, covered in hospital blankets and hooked up to what seemed like hundreds of machines. A tear suddenly escaped Mark's eyes as he looked at her, "Damn," he whispered to himself. They walked up to the bed and looked at her. "She looks so fragile," Stephanie said as a batch of tears escaped her eyes. "I'll give you all a few minutes," Dr. Prater said as he exited the room.

Mark just stared at her. She was beaten up pretty badly, her lip was swollen from the stitches, and she had bruises on her neck and cheek. Mark's heart began beating furiously in his chest when he thought about Paul. God help him if they ever came face to face again, Paul would need more than a couple of machines to keep him breathing. Mark gently took Brooke's hand in his, as he rubbed small circles with his thumb. "I'm so sorry baby," Mark stated, not knowing what to say. Stephanie wiped her tears away and leaned down to kiss Brooke's forehead, "Me too." She whispered as she sniffled and placed her head on Brooke's chest, listening to her heartbeat. "At least she's still alive…" Stephanie said, trying to remain optimistic. Mark shook his head, "If I hadn't have left her there, we wouldn't be here right now…" he said.

Then the door opened once more, and Dr. Prater made his way in the room. He made his way over to the monitors to check on the machines, and the amount of liquid that was dripping into the tube inserted into Brooke's other hand. The doctor looked at the group sternly, "If she ever awakens, she may not be the same. She could have memory loss, brain damage, all sorts of things." Stephanie couldn't help but chuckle cynically through her tears, "You people are always so pessimistic," she states. "This is the time when you're supposed to tell us that everything is going to be just fine. She'll recover quite nicely, everything will be okay. Give us a bit of hope here." The doctor shrugs, "I'd love to say that to everyone. Unfortunately then I'd be getting a bad rap for lying to patients and their families. I can assure you that we will take the best care that we can of Brooke, and we will do everything in our power to get her to wake up safely."

Mark stands up and heads out of the room for some fresh air. He figured he'd better call Kevin and deliver the news. "Hello?" Comes Kevin's frantic voice on the other line. "Hey Kevin, it's uh, Mark." Kevin could hear the concern in Mark's voice, "Alright man, don't beat around the bush. Tell me what's wrong with my baby sister." Kevin said sternly. "Kevin… Brooke is uh, Brooke is in a coma right now." Mark could sense Kevin's silent shock over the phone. Mark closed his eyes and waited for a response, silence prevails. "What exactly happened, Mark?" Kevin asks angrily. Mark sighed deeply, "Kevin, can we wait until tomorrow to talk about this? There are some things that I need to explain to you in person." Kevin nodded on the other line, "You're damn right you have a lot of explaining to do. And you better have a damn good explanation if you want to keep your head on your shoulders." Kevin said calmly as he hung up the phone. Mark looked at his phone and shook his head. Only problem was, he didn't exactly have a good explanation.

Mark returns to the room where Stephanie and Scott are gathered around the bed, where a still silent and motionless Brooke lays. "Well, I called Kevin. Tomorrow should be an interesting day to say the very least." Scott shook his head in frustration, "I'll fucking talk to him. This is not your fault Mark, it isn't Stephanie's either. You both need to stop blaming yourself for this- anyone would have thought what you did upon walking in on that situation. It is not your fault that Paul is a damn lunatic, he is going to pay for this." Stephanie and Mark looked at one another. Scott was right about one thing, Paul was going to have hell to pay if Mark had anything to say about it. Stephanie looked down at Brooke and lightly chuckled to herself, "I haven't seen Brooke this quite, and this still, in a long time." A tear trickles down Mark's face, "I know."


	18. Chapter 18 :: Come Back To Me

Chapter Eighteen

Mark did all he could to get Brooke transferred to a hospital closer to home, but the doctors simply wouldn't allow it. "Who knows what complications can happen during the transfer," Dr. Prater says as Mark argues with him. "She could stop breathing, or worse, go into heart failure…we don't know, and I don't want to take that risk." Defiantly, Mark stands up, and returns sternly, "Then I'm not leaving this hospital until she wakes up."

"Uh, Mark, you've got to-" Vince starts, but he is quickly cut off by Mark raising his hand between them. "I've made my decision, Vince," he replies. "I want to be the first person she sees when she wakes up, and let her know how sorry I am." Mark glares at the others, challenging them to say anything more. Vince sighs, and says, "All right, Mark. I guess it should be someone close to her that stays." He rubs his neck in frustrated confusion. "We'll work something into the storylines for your disappearance. Stephanie, are you staying as well?" Stephanie nods, and replies, "Someone's got to watch them both." Vince nods, and responds, "Okay, I guess that's that. I had security look at the cameras in the hallways near the corridor where Scott found Brooke. Turns out that the times match perfectly. I think we'vegot a pretty good case lined up against Paul, and you bet your ass we'll be pressing full charges." With that, Vince leaves with the doctor, still trying to convince them to transfer Brooke.

Mark sits back down in the chair, and takes Brooke's hand in his. "Mark, have you talked to Kevin today? He's suppose to be getting in this afternoon." Scott asks quietly. Mark shakes his head, and answers, "I haven't heard from him since yesterday. What if she doesn't wake up, Scott? That'll leave Kevin without anyone..." Scott places his hand firmly on Mark's shoulder. "Mark, she will wake up," he tells him. "She will, because she's got you waiting for her to." Scott pats Mark's back, and goes to Stephanie. "We'll bring you something to eat." Mark nods absently as they leave, not taking his eyes off of Brooke's closed eyelids.

It is quiet, except for the beeping of the heart-rate monitor and the other machines around them. Mark's thumb continuously strokes the smooth skin on the back of Brooke's hand. A thought suddenly strikes him, and he leans forward to touch her stomach with his free hand. Thinking of nothing else, Mark began to rub in circles, hoping she'd remember this at least. An hour passes quickly before Stephanie and Scott come back with a white Styrofoam box. Scott sets it on the table beside Mark. "What are you doing, big dog?" he asks softly. Mark sadly smiles, and replies gently, "Whenever I was sick, nervous, or something, Brooke would rub my stomach like this. I was hoping that if I did it to her, maybe it would bring her back faster." Mark sighs heavily, he could only pray that Brooke would wake up soon.

***************

Two and a half weeks pass by so agonizingly slow without any change. Kevin did end up making an appearance at the hospital the night after the attack. Scott had had a long talk with him about the situation, and how hard it has been on Mark. Eventually Kevin let by gones be by gones. It was clear to him that Mark truly cared about his sister, and Kevin knew Brooke would slap him silly if he gave Mark a hard time during these trying hours. It gets extremely difficult as the days go by, without any change. Kevin, Mark, Scott, and Stephanie had gotten hotel rooms at a near by hotel, not that they stayed there very often.

Mark was practically glued to the chair beside Brooke's bed most days. One hand holds her's, the other rubbing her stomach. The other days are usually when he calls Vince to tell him of any changes, which aren't many. Scott and Stephanie are withhim as much as possible each day. Mark knew it teared them apart seeing him like this, but the way he saw it, he had no choice. This is where he had to be. Kevin was in and out. It was difficult for him to see his sister this way, and Kevin was in the process of hiring a lawyer with Vince to press charges against Paul. Paul was fired almost immediately upon Vince looking at those security tapes. Even though they couldn't see down the specific corridor where everything happened, just watching Paul run out anxiously, looking around in a daze with blood on his shirt- was enough evidence for them. They were charging him for attempted murder, or even perhaps a murder case would ensue if Brooke doesn't wake.

The doctors cautioned Mark that after two weeks, the chances of Brooke waking up were growing slimmer. They advised him, and Kevin, that it might be time to take her off the machines. Rather then let her spend the rest of her life as a vegetable should she go on breathing on her own, or let her go on to the next world. Stubbornly, Mark and Kevin refused to let them do that to Brooke. They believed she would come out of the coma, and they weren't about to give up on her that easy.

The dawn of May 11th is bright and glorious, so the nurses tell Mark. The room is kept dark, and Mark didn't really care for the dawn, the dusk, or anything that deals with happiness anymore. During the past few days, his hope was dimming, so anything bright and cheery he began to despise. "How can it be bright and beautiful and glorious when there are people laying in hospital beds, fighting for their lives, and half of them won't live?" Mark questions one nurse as she brings him a breakfast tray. It had become a thing for the nurses to bring Mark food during the day when they came to check Brooke's rates; they thought Mark staying by Brooke's side was so romantic.

The nurse sets the tray on the table beside Mark. "Oh, deary, you must get out of this dark room more often," she tells him. "It really isn't any good for you to be in here so much. You're missing a lot." Mark chuckles to himself and shakes his head as he looks back at Brooke's pale face. The nurse smiles and pats Mark's shoulder. "Don't worry, Mark," she says soothingly. "She will wake up, I promise." She continues to smile as she heads out of the room.

Mark places the tray on his lap, and eats slowly- his gaze set on Brooke. 'How angelic she looks,' he thought to himself as he chewed. 'It's almost useless now, to sit here, when she's not waking.' Mark closed my eyes in annoyance at himself. 'She _will_ wake up. Stop being such a pessimist!'

Mark finished his breakfast quickly, and placed the tray on the table. He retakes Brooke's cold hand, his thumb rubbing the back of it. "Brooke, I don't know if you can hear me or anything," he says, and rolls his eyes at his ignorance. "God, I've been here two and a half weeks…you'd think by now I would learn that you can't..." Mark shrugs his shoulders, and sighs heavily, thinking 'What the hell.' "Do you know how much you're missed here? Everyone's stopped by to see you at least once, and Kevin's so worried about you. We all are, of course, but for your brother at least, come back to us." Mark closed his eyes at the threatening tears. "Come back to me. I need you in my life, Brooke; I'm in love with you. And I'm sorry I couldn't tell you that sooner…" A tear does manage to escape, and Mark chuckles to himself at the thought of how much of a softy Brooke turns him into. "I love you so much, it hurts, and the thought of you not here with me scares me beyond belief." Mark wipes the stray tear from his face, praying that there is light at the end of the tunnel.


	19. Chapter 19 :: The Battle Is Complete

**I just have to thank all of you for your kind messages, and reviews of this story. I read, and deeply appreciate each review I get, so for those reading and not reviewing, I'd love to hear some feedback from you guys too! This is my first fanfiction, so all the sweet comments really make my day! There are a couple chapters left of "Changes", so strap yourselves in for the remainder of the ride. I'll be working on a new Taker FanFiction called "_Deep Blue_", and that will be posted after this story is complete. Thanks again, and enjoy! :)**

Chapter Nineteen.

The door opens, and Mark quickly wipes the fallen tear from his face. "Hey, Mark, how are you holdin' up?" Stephanie asks with Scott behind her, slowly bending down to hug him. "You okay?" Mark nods slowly, taking a deep breath before replying, "I'm good. Where's Kevin?"

"Out and about, what else?" she says with a chuckle. Stephanie looks down at the table. "Why don't you go down to the cafe, take the tray back to them, and maybe grab some air?" When she sees Mark about to protest, she lays a finger over his lips. "I'll come with you. Scott will stay here and watch Brooke, and if she even breathes, he'll tell you." Mark smiles at the little joke, "Thanks, guys, for everything you two have done for me lately." Mark stands up, then leans over to place a kiss upon Brooke's dry lips. "Be right back, baby," he whispers lowly, then grabs the tray, and exits the room with Stephanie behind him.

It takes about ten minutes to get to the cafe and return their tray. It looks as if everyone in the hospital is in there- so many people, and such a long line. After dropping off the tray, Mark and Stephanie head outside for some fresh air, but Stephanie is stopped by the gift shop's glimmering objects. They enter the little shop, "Why do hospitals have gift shops anyway?" Stephanie begins, "I always thought it quite strange." Mark nods in agreement as Stephanie looks around, and spots the flower stand area- where fresh flower bouquets are placed.

She walks over, gazing at the beautiful late spring flowers in crystal clear vases. One bouquet in particular catches her eye, and Mark's. It consists of a single tiger lily bloom, big and orange, set in the middle of light lavender lilacs, two white carnations, and various colors of forget-me-nots. Mark smiles to himself, "Weren't tiger lilies Brooke's favorite?" Stephanie chuckles and nods, "You bet, she'd love this." Mark bends over to smell the tiger lily. "Do you like that one, Mark?" comes an old voice from beside them.

They both look up in shock for a moment, and are relieved to see it's the gift shop owner; a man in his late seventies. "Yeah, tiger lilies were a friend of mine's favorite," he replies, then became confused. "How did you know my name?" he asks. "It's everywhere," the old man says with a shrug. "A lot of the nurses come in here, and they're always telling me about how you wait beside your love to awaken from her coma." Mark nods, glancing back at the bouquet. He wanted to buy it, but as he gazes at the price tag, he realized he didn't have any cash on him- and they didn't take credit cards at the small shop. The man picks up the vase into his hands, and hands it to Mark. "Here, a gift. Something to keep your hope alive in this trying time. The battle is complete."

Mark accepts the gift with a touch of confusion, and holds the vase gingerly, as if it'd break if he didn't. Stephanie smiles, almost in tears- "Thank you so much, sir," she tells him graciously. "This is just the 'pick-me-up' we needed." In a quick motion, Stephanie hugs the man- Mark shakes his hand, and the two head back toward the elevators. "Where've you been?" Scott asks after they enter the room. "I was concerned when you didn't come right back." Mark crosses the room, and places the glass vase in front of the other bouquets that others had brought. "Sorry," Mark replies distantly. "I got a bit…sidetracked." Mark gazes at the big tiger lily in the middle of the arrangement a moment longer, and turns back to take Brooke's hand again. Smiling at the old man's words, he bends down to kiss Brooke's lips, knowing he wouldn't get a response.

A returning pressure from the other side surprises him, and he stands upright immediately. Brooke's eyes slowly open, and she groans loudly. "What's a girl got to do to get some food around here?" she asks groggily, shifting slightly. Mark begins to smile excitedly. "Brooke, you're awake!" Stephanie exclaims, and leans back down to hug her friend. She hears Brooke's sharp intake of breath, and pulls back quickly. "Oh, I'm sorry…I didn't mean to hurt you." Brooke smiles, and takes Stephanie's hand in hers. "No, I'm good," she replies quietly. "Just a bit stiff." She then looks up at a shocked Mark, staring at her with an excited look on his face. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Brooke says with a chuckle. "Hell no!" Mark responds, squeezing Brooke's other hand. "You scared the hell outta everyone." Mark begins to chuckle, "You should've seen your brother." Brooke lightly laughs, and returns, "Aw, and I missed it." She gazes into Mark's eyes, and her smile widens. "And you. Are you all right?" Mark nods, "I've been worried sick about you. You've been playing sleeping beauty for close to three weeks." Brooke's eyes widen, "Three weeks, huh?" she replies, and gently squeezes Mark's hand. "Not too bad." Mark nods again with a huge smile, "Pretty damn bad, little girl." Scott clears his throat, "I'm gonna go call Vince, and tell him you're awake," he says, and Brooke nods as he heads toward the door. "I better call Kevin and tell the nurses, I'll be back sweetie," Stephanie says as she gently kisses Brooke's forehead, and heads out behind Scott. Once the door closes, Brooke looks up at Mark, "Mark, I-"

"No, don't," he interrupts. "This was my fault. I shouldn't have falsley accused you of that, then we wouldn't be in this predicament. I'm so sorry, Brooke, so incredibly sorry." Brooke's hand escapes Mark's, and her fingers trace his cheek. "You know better than that," Brooke says gently. "Just your typical miscommunication predicament. I hear that can be a problem in many new relationships." Mark smiles at the comment, which makes Brooke smile. "Come down here." Mark gladly leans over, hugging her softly, afraid he might hurt her. She holds him tightly. "You scared me so much," Mark whispers against her chest. "Kevin's been so worried." Brooke quietly laughs. "You knew I'd wake up sometime," she comments. "I couldn't just leave you like that; that's not my style." Suddenly the door reopens, and Stephanie and Dr. Prater walk in.

After the many tests a couple of hours later, Brooke is free to leave. Once she's dressed and ready, Stephanie, Mark, and Scott lead the way out of the room. A sudden thudding sound makes them turn. Brooke is stumbling backwards, holding her forehead. Mark walks to her side, laughing a bit. "You forgot to use the door, baby," he tells her, placing his arm around her waist. "I forgot I was in a hospital," she grumbles, rubbing her head. Mark pats her hip, and replies, "How could you forget? They were poking you all day." Brooke shrugs as the group walks out of the hospital. The sun blinds them as they get into Scott's rented car. "Where are we going?"

"Out," Brooke replies after buckling her seat belt, Mark smiles and places his arm around Brooke's shoulder. "I'm starving!"


	20. Chapter 20 :: Taking a Chance

Chapter Twenty.

Brooke and Mark walk through the front door of Mark's ranch a few days later, and immediately, running footsteps can be heard from upstairs. "Welcome home, sis!" Kevin says excitedly as he embraces her in a hug. Brooke laughs and returns his embrace, "Thank you! It's great to have some warm weather again and feel the sun." Kevin nods in agreement and motions toward the back door, "Let's go out to the backyard." With Mark's nod, Kevin makes his way to the door. Mark takes Brooke's hand in his. "Kevin's not very subtle, is he?" Brooke says, and Mark laughs quietly. "Be glad it wasn't me coercing you to go back there," Mark replies. "I'd probably blow the surprise."

"You?" she states sarcastically. "No, not you! You'd never blow a surprise!" Mark chuckles at her, and places his arm down Brooke's back, his hand resting on her hip. The three go through the open sliding glass door that leads out to the backyard. Brooke and Mark follow after Kevin, and come upon the gathering of superstars, friends, and their families. "Welcome back!" they shout as Brooke walks up. Brooke chuckles as she looks at Mark and lightly punches his arm, "Well this is certainly a surprise!" She then turns her attention back to the group, "Thank you guys. But you could have just waited until I made another appearance at a show. You didn't all have to fly here like this!" The group begins to come around, and embrace Brooke. "Wait?" Matt states when he comes up. "You know the Hardey's don't wait to party!" Brooke laughs, and replies, "Yeah, so we know very well."

The night continues on happily and with tons of fun, food, and drinking. Mark watches, specifically, the happieness in Brooke's eyes and the laughter that escapes her throat. He could tell that this was truley the happiest Brooke has been since he's met her, which just made him even more thankful for her awakening. Mark slips his arm behind Brooke's back, and takes her hand in his. He leans closer to her, and whispers, "So, glad to be home?" She smiles up at him, "You need to ask?" Someone's laughter catches their attention, and they look up to see Scott and Kevin joking with one another. When they catch Mark's gaze, they walk towards him. "Brooke, you should have seen the big dog here!" Scott exclaims, still laughing. "He stayed by your bedside the entire time you were at that hospital. I don't think he even left your side to use the bathroom! "

"Yeah," Kevin adds, "he was like a little, loyal puppy, refusing to leave his master." Mark laughs, and replies, "See, that's where you're wrong. She is not my master, nor am I hers. That's what goes wrong in many relationships." Brooke smirks up at Mark and shakes her head, "Guys really, the truth is, he knows he can't live without me, not even to use the bathroom." Mark looks down at her- giving her a dirty look, "Don't you wish!"

"You know it's true," she states with a laugh. "Bite me." Mark replies sternly. Brooke laughs again as she says, "Gladly." Kevin and Scott clear their throats. "You know, you two really should save the foreplay for the bedroom," Kevin says, and Scott nods. "It's kinda…disgusting in front of all these people- and in front of your brother Brooke? That's not cool," Scott adds with another laugh. Brooke stands up, getting into their faces as much as she can, her tiny stature being overtaken by their massive bodies. "If we want to have 'foreplay', as you two put it, in front of everyone, we will," she returns, and smiles deviously. "After all, this is Mark's place of residence, and should you challenge it, you won't be having anything to do with such activities, as you won't have anything to use."

Kevin oh's at that. "Man, I think she's talking about doing a Lorena Bobbit," he says through his laughter. Scott snaps back, "I got that part, Kevin." He smiles back down at Brooke. "Okay, Little One, I ain't gonna challenge you…especially when I know that you'll make good on that, and if not you, the Deadman will."

"I ain't touching anything down there, Scott," Mark replies. "I don't know where that's been." He stands up beside Brooke. "And even if I did, you still wouldn't catch me near it. Sorry to ruin your hopes, dreams, and fantasies about me." Scott shrugs, and says, "Your loss!" He then scampers off before Mark can retaliate. The party doesn't last too long into the night, and Mark and Brooke were in the house before 2:00am. Brooke straightens out some pillows on Mark's bed before plopping down onto the bedspread, "Ahh, just how I remembered it." Brooke says with a devious grin on her lips. Mark smiles and crawls next to her, wrapping his massive arms around her tiny body. Brooke closes her eyes in contentment, as Mark's lips begin to softly caress her cheek, his hands beginning to roam. "Stop being a naughty boy before something overtakes me," Brooke says jokingly. Mark does stop, and releases her body from his grasp. He sits up on the side of the bed, and looks down at her with a serious look on his face. "Come over here, Brooke," he says, patting the bed beside him. Brooke sits up and scoots next to Mark as she feels his arm snake around her waist. "We've got some serious discussing to do."

Brooke places her head on his shoulder, "I know," she states with a sigh- not sure of what he means, but she had a pretty clear idea it's not something they haven't discussed already. "I was thinking, and you know how dangerous that can be." Mark says with a light chuckle as he takes Brooke's hand in his. "I don't know how you're feeling exactly- but I can tell you that for me personally, I only have eyes for you. I'm not interested in seeing anyone else, and I've been wanting to make that official." Brooke looked into his eyes and blinked away the threatening tears. She hadn't been in a serious relationship for years, and wasn't sure if she could take the plunge just yet. Brooke sighs and looks down at their hands, what was she thinking? She knew she was afraid of commitment, but hadn't this man proved himself enough? Brooke looked into his eyes and rubbed her nose against his. "Mark, you could quite possibly be the most amazing man I've had the pleasure to know," she starts. "And I want nothing more then for our relationship to be official. But I have to be honest with you when I say I have my doubts. You're always on the road, your job is your number one priority and I could never take that away from you. It is already hard as hell for me to be away from you." Mark looked down and let out a deep sigh. It wasn't exactly the answer that he was wanting to hear. Brooke put her finger under Mark's chin and lifted his head up to meet her eyes, "But I can't fight the feelings I have for you. And I can't let my silly doubts keep me from pursuing something amazing. I can't keep denying it, I'm in love with you, Mark. And I want to take a chance with you- I need you." Mark's smile widened as he gazed into her eyes, "You're such an evil, tormenting woman. Don't make me nervous like that again." Mark said with laughter in his voice as he pulled her lips to his. "I love you too, Brooke. I think I always have." Brooke grins and wraps her arms around Mark's neck as she deepens the kiss. Mark lets his hands tangle through her hair as they both laugh, and fall back onto the bed.


	21. Chapter 21 :: Eyes Of The Public

Chapter Twenty-One.

*********************

**Two Years Later.**

It had been two years since Brooke and Mark began dating, and their relationship seemingly grew stronger each and every day. Brooke moved in with Mark about a year ago. She'd spent most of her time there as it was, and the two figured it would only make sense to have their own space together. It seemed picture perfect on the outside, and for the most part it was. Yet the two found out that they didn't agree on much when it came to living together. They had their arguments, and at times, questioned if this was the right thing to do. Yet still, throughout all the turbulence, they battled through it and refused to give up on each other. That was what a real relationship was all about, compromise, and making it work. Brooke joined Mark on the road most weeks. That was always a big issue in Brooke's mind. She didn't want to take Mark's work away from him, but she hated seeing him only two or three days out of the week. So, Mark insisted that she join him on the tours, and Brooke hesitantly agreed.

She was slowly becoming more dependant on Mark, which frightened her. She wasn't working as often due to all the traveling, and Mark was the main bread winner of the household. She did a few photo shoots here and there, but her modeling career was dwindling. "I love every second of it, Steph, don't get me wrong. I just feel like a complete tool when you look at my mediocre life compared to all of Mark's success. It blows." Brooke confessed to Stephanie as they were eating lunch at a New York City restaurant. Stephanie shook her head, "Brooke, it has been two years. That is a long time, Mark loves you. I'm sure if he thought you were a burden on his life in any way he wouldn't have kept you around for so long."

Brooke let out a deep sigh as she poked at her food, "I know, and I love him. But sometimes I wonder if my career would have taken off more had I not agreed to hop on these tours. I know Mark has more money then he knows what to do with, but honestly- I look like a gold digger." Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Brooke, you're not a gold digger and everyone knows that. Stop listening to the media, I know that is what is getting to you..." Brooke sighed once more, it was eating her up inside. The tabloids had kept spreading rumors about the WCW Wrestler's little model sister, dating Mark Calaway the most famous WWE superstar. "I mean, these things that they write are just so outlandish," Brooke said as she flipped through the pages of US Weekly. "Look at this," she stated as she pointed to a picture of Mark with Michelle McCool, a fellow WWE wrestler. "Undertaker cheating on alleged model girlfriend, Brooke Fox. Mark Calaway aka "The Undertaker" to his WWE fans was seen recently snuggling up to Michelle McCool in a Huston airport this Monday. Insiders say that the two have secretly been having an affair." Brooke placed the magazine on the table and ran her fingers through her long, dark locks. "I'm not use to this. Now that everyone knows that we are official I'm constantly reading internet articles and rumors, and this, and that. We've managed to keep our relationship a secret for so long, now look at what has happened."

Stephanie reached out and placed her hand on Brooke's, "Honey, you're just not use to all the publicity. You have to ignore it. People are going to talk and make things up, that just comes with the territory. Do you know how many rumors started up about Paul and I after Paul got fired?" Brooke's breath got caught in her throat as she thought about Paul. It had been a long time since the incident occurred, but it still made Brooke sick when she thought about it. Stephanie noticed Brooke tense up and changed the subject, "You two love and trust one another. That is all that matters in the end, fuck what everyone else thinks."

Brooke nodded in agreement, "I guess it will just take some adjusting time."

After lunch, the two girls headed off to the hotel to get ready for the New Year's Eve party that the WWE was throwing for the wrestlers and their families. It was being held in the same hotel that the crew was staying at in Times Square. Vince had rented a suit over looking the bright lights of the city, and invited everyone to join him in the countdown to the new year. Stephanie and Brooke had been shopping all afternoon for dresses and accessories. As they walked into the hotel room, they found Mark and Kevin sitting on the couch watching T.V and drinking beers. Kevin had really warmed up to Mark. It took some time, actually, a lot of time, but the effort was there- and Mark was proving himself more and more each day, that was all Kevin asked for. "Hey guys," Stephanie said as she placed the shopping bags on the chair next to Mark. "Of course they went shopping, how typical." Kevin states with a smug grin on his face. Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Better then sitting on our fat asses drinking beer and watching Sports Center all day." Kevin shrugged his shoulders and took another swig of his beer.

Brooke bent down and placed a kiss on Mark's lips. "Ready for tonight, punk?" Brooke asked Mark as she glanced at the hockey game, then back to Mark's eyes, glued to the glowing picture. "Not quite." he admitted. "Actually, Kevin and I were on our way out to go pick up our suits from down the street." Mark stretched his arms over his head and stood up, giving Brooke another quick kiss before grabbing his Key Card and heading out the door, Kevin right behind him. As the door closed the two girls look at each other, "Do we have fucking cooties?" Brooke asked, seemingly confused as to why the boys ran out so quick. Stephanie chuckled and shrugged, "Who the hell knows. Lets begin the make-over process, shall we?" Stephanie said with a grin as she picked up the shopping bags. Brooke smiled widely and nodded in agreement, "We shall."

Two hours later, the girls were ready and waiting for Kevin and Mark to come home. "Seriously, what the fuck is taking them so long?" Brooke asked sounding concerned as she dialed Mark's number for the fifth time. "Just calm down, they probably got caught up in traffic, it is New Years Eve in New York City- it has to be a mad house out there." Just as Stephanie finished her sentence the door opened, and Kevin emerged with Mark behind him. The two men were already dressed, Kevin wore a black and white suit, Mark in all black. Brooke let out a sigh of relief and flipped her phone shut, "Jesus, where the hell have you two been? I've been calling." Kevin chuckled, "Relax, we were having some guy time discussing some things. We just got dressed in my hotel room what is the big deal?"

"The big deal is we've been waiting and you guys have been gone for two hours when you said you were going down the street. I was worried, you could have at least answered your phones." Brooke folded her arms across her chest and awaited an explanation. Mark walked over and brushed her curly hair away from her angry eyes, "You look extremely gorgeous," he said in a husky voice as he kissed her forehead. Brooke couldn't help but blush and rolled her eyes, "You better stop spoiling me with compliments when I get angry at you. I might get use to it and start expecting them all the time- then you won't be able to use them as your get out of free jail card." Mark lightly laughed, "I think that can be arranged." Stephanie cleared her throat, "Okay, moral of the story: Kevin and Mark are douche bags, and Brooke is a push over. Can we please get this show on the road? I have a meeting with Jack Daniels tonight." Kevin laughed, "Sir yes sir!"


	22. Chapter 22 :: Understand

**Thanks so much for the reviews! One more chapter to be posted after this one. Will Mark and Brooke be able to put their differences aside and be together? Or will Brooke's fears for the future be enough to tear them apart? R&R Please, loving the reviews! :)**

Chapter Twenty-Two.

The sound of a dinner fork clicking against a wine glass had caught everyone's attention, and they all looked up to see Vince attempting to speak. The night had gone smoothly, and the suite in the hotel was simply stunning as it over looked the masses of people in Times Square. There was only twenty more minutes until the countdown to the new year, and Vince was trying to make a small speech in a plot to get everyone ready for the countdown. Everyone had been drinking quite a bit, aside from Mark who was seemingly taking it rather slow. Brooke was as well, she had a feeling it was going to be a long night and didn't want to get too crazy this early. Her brother and Stephanie on the other hand, were a different story. "Woooo! Speech!" Kevin shouted at the top of his lungs as he raised his Gin and Tonic towards Vince. Vince nodded, "Thanks for that Kevin," he began as he cleared his throat. "I just really wanted to thank all of you for joining me, my wife Linda, and children, Stephanie and Shane, here tonight. This is a big thank you to all of you who have helped turn this business into what it is today. Without all of you, the WWE couldn't be a successful corporation. And for that, I thank all of you for your hard work and dedication. With that, I'd like to wish you all a happy, healthy, and blessed New Year, cheers!" With that, the room raises their glasses in a toast.

Mark takes a few steps and joins Vince's side, "I'd like to add to that Vince, if I could." Mark asks, and Vince gladly steps aside and let's Mark take the floor. "I've been in this business for close to seventeen years. And let me tell you that in those seventeen years, I haven't seen so much passion and dedication in a group of men and women, in my career at the WWE. Being your locker room leader was never something I petitioned for, it was almost bestowed upon me. And I have to tell you all that it has been an honor and a privilege working with you- but I'm going to be announcing my retirement at the end of 2009." Suddenly the room went silent and mouths hit the floor, including Brooke's. She had no idea that Mark was considering retirement. Mark couldn't help but chuckle at the awkward silence, "I know it is a shock, but I'm asking that you all be happy for me. I finally feel comfortable enough to pass the torch on to all of you, and let you guys take the business where it needs to be. And I know you will. I've busted my ass, broken bones, had I don't even know how many surgeries- hell I've probably taken years off of my life in that ring. I'm on the road twenty-four seven, and at this point in time I'd like to enjoy my hard work. And I'd like to enjoy it with a certain someone," suddenly Mark's eyes were gazing into Brooke's, and Brooke looked around in confusion. "Come here, you, I have something to say to you." Mark said as he extended his hand for Brooke to stand next to him. "You are an amazing woman," Mark started as Brooke began to blush, pleading with her eyes for Mark to stop. "Through out the years we've had our fights, we've had our differences, hell sometimes I want to strangle you and I'm sure you've felt the same towards me at times. But that doesn't change the fact that you've been there for me, you've taught me things about life that even in our years of age difference I didn't know, and you've continued to offer me your love and support in the most difficult of times." Mark reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black jewelry box, and was immediately on his knee as the black box was in Brooke's vision. "Brooke, you are my best friend. And I'd like to ask you, in front of our friends and families, if you'd be my wife?" Brooke's hand was over her mouth and her eyes were welling up in tears, "Mark..." she shrieked out, not knowing what else to say. She stared at the square cut diamond ring in front of her, with smaller diamonds around the silver band. Mark smiled at her, "The more you do that, the more nervous I get," Mark says, a bit of laughter in his voice. Brooke nodded her head, "Of course I'll marry you Mark!" she said as she jumped into Mark's arms.

The room suddenly exploded in cheers as Brooke said yes. The newly engaged couple couldn't help but laugh at the reaction from everyone, and Brooke's lips were to Mark's instantly as tears rolled down her cheeks. "You look like a raccoon, you know that?" Mark said as he wiped away some of her tears. She could only imagine how ridiculous she looked as her mascara ran down her face, but she didn't care. Who did she have to impress in a room full of her closest friends? Mark took Brooke's left hand and placed the engagement ring on her finger. Brooke's smile was the biggest he'd ever seen, and she wrapped her arms around him embracing him in a hug as she whispered in his ear, "Thank you for making me the happiest woman on the planet."

"One minute!" Stephanie shouted as everyone ran to the balcony to countdown the new year with the rest of Times Square. "Five, four, three, two, one-- HAPPY NEW YEAR!" The city erupted with cheers, and Mark pressed his lips to Brooke's for the third year in a row, and hopefully many more years to come.

* * *

After a long night, Mark and Brooke headed back to their hotel room together. Brooke couldn't be happier, but she had a few things to get off her chest before she could feel comfortable being Mark'sfiance. Brooke pulled out her US Weekly magazine and tossed it to Mark. The article was circled, and Brooke stood silently as Mark read it. "You've got to be kidding me," Mark said as he looked up into her eyes. "Brooke, we've talked about this. You can't read this garbage it just fucks with your head." Mark picked up the magazine and tossed it in the garbage. "That picture of you and Michelle, you two looked pretty cozy. That's all I'm saying," Brooke stated, referring to the black and white picture of Mark and Michelle at the airport, her left leg casually over his as they waited for their flight. Mark let out a deep sigh and rubbed his tired eyes, "Brooke, I don't want to fucking talk about this right now." He said, sounding frustrated. Brooke tapped her foot, "Why not? I think it is a legitimate concern, people don't just come up with those random things without having a semi-decent reason to suspect something." Mark slammed his fist to the table in anger and stood up, "Damn it Brooke! You don't know the fucking tabloids like I do. They will do anything to come up with some bullshit story to sell their god-damned magazines. You know that Michelle and I are friends, nothing more. She's married for Christ's sake!"

"Actually she's in the process of finalizing her divorce," Brooke mumbled under her breath. Mark let out a deep sigh and looked up, shaking his head in confusion. "Do you really believe this bullshit Brooke? Do you? Because if you do then I'll fucking leave now. I just gave you a fucking ring." Brooke looked down, avoiding his eyes. "Answer me, do you believe the fucking dipshits at US Weekly, or do you believe the man who just dropped down on one fucking knee in front of everyone and proposed to you?" Brooke did believe Mark, deep down. But at the time she was so hurt by the article and rumors that she wasn't sure what to believe. Brooke continued to look down at the floor. Mark shook his head and brushed past her as he headed for the door. "Where are you going?" Brooke asked as Mark grabbed his keys. "I don't need to fucking be here right now, clearly you have some thinking over to do. You let me know when you're ready to talk some sense."

Mark slammed the door and Brooke's temper was beginning to rise. She grabbed the room Key Card and followed Mark out the door. Mark walked back to the suite and headed towards the balcony for some fresh air. "Mark! Don't just walk out on me, I'm sorry I have legitimate concerns!"

"No! Your concerns are bullshit!" Mark yelled as he ran is fingers through his hair. "This is why I tried to keep you away from the business and out of the lime light. This is not how I wanted our night to turn out, this is suppose to be a happy and fun night, we just got fucking engaged. But somehow you've managed to turn that into a fight too." Mark turned around and looked over the balcony into the city. Brooke shook her head and spun him around to look at her, "Fuck you! I'm not trying to start a fight, okay? I'm sorry I'm just not use to this crap. People who I don't even know talking about me and making false assumptions about who I am. I've been reading so much of that crap that I don't know what to believe." Mark grabbed her shoulders and bent down to her eye level, "Stop reading that garbage." He said in a serious tone, "You need to learn to ignore it, Brooke. It is going to continue especially if you marry me. Can you handle that, or can't you? I need to know Brooke because unfortunately that is the shitty side of fame." Brooke looked away, she wasn't sure if she could handle it after seeing how riled up she got from one little photo. Mark shook his head, "I gave you a ring, I want you to be my wife. I wanted to retire next year and start a family with you, Brooke." He reached down and took Brooke's hand, as he slid the engagement ring off her finger and held it up to her face. "This is my commitment to you, but if you can't commit to me then I'm sorry but I can't give you this ring now. You're not ready for this like I thought you were." Mark placed the ring in his back pocket and left the suite, leaving Brooke on the balcony by herself and the crowd of people on the street below. Brooke blinked away the threatening tears as she said on the floor. She knew she was being unreasonable, but she couldn't help it. She always thought she had the world cradled in her hands, but now Mark was the one playing the cards.


	23. Chapter 23 :: Life Lessons

Chapter Twenty-Three.

Brooke wiped away some of her fallen tears and shook her head. She was a foolish girl, who was she kidding? She didn't realize just how many trust issues she had until she let Mark into her life. Her past had a direct effect on her future. She always tried to rise above it and let the past stay in the past, but she couldn't help her trust issues. What if Mark were to leave her in the future, too? She wasn't an idiot, she knew that Mark wouldn't betray her like that- and he especially wouldn't be foolish enough to do it with a camera in his face. She'd only gotten upset for suppressed reasons, hidden fears that she couldn't quite get over just yet. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sliding glass door behind her, she turned to look, and saw Mark standing in it. Mark took a deep breath, "You know I didn't mean what I said," he started, looking at the floor. "I'd never do anything to hurt you, Brooke. I wish you could believe me when I tell you that."

Brooke cleaned off her face a bit more before nodding her head, "I do believe you, Mark. I'm sorry. I guess I just never got over some things and I need to move on and open up. I'm just not use to being in the public eye like that," Brooke sank to the floor, "I'm a mess." Mark sighed and walked over to Brooke as he knelt down beside her. "You're not a mess. I understand where you're coming from, not being use to the tabloids and the media. But I think I worked pretty hard to gain your trust and keep it. I knew what I was getting into with you, Brooke. I'm not an idiot. I'm well aware of your past and how it effects you today- that doesn't matter to me because I see who you really are. You just let your past consume you, but that is not what defines you." Mark reached into his back pocket and pulled out the engagement ring once more, "This belongs to you, baby. If you'll accept it. I'm tired of fighting, forget the past, forget what everyone says." Brooke smiled as Mark placed the ring back on her finger. She leaned up and placed a kiss on his lips. Mark smiled, "That's my girl."

* * *

Ever since the minute Brooke said yes to Mark, life has gotten even more stressful. The constant planning for the wedding, and everything that goes along with it, begins to get to her. She was truly enjoying every minute of it- despite the stress. Brooke had always dreamed of planning her wedding- and as far as she was concerned she was only going to be having one, this was her chance. But sometimes, a girl's just gotta have a break.

It is the bright Tuesday afternoon of June 19th when Brooke decided she needed a little quiet time. With the date set for June 21st, and that day approaching fast, why not? Noticing that no one seems to be around, she heads to the library in the house, and sits down at the plush bay window with a good novel, enjoying how the sunlight washes over her warmly. "A great time for a break from the constants," she says to herself, smiling as she opens the book in her hands. "Thank God for the few weeks off as well."

Brooke became so engrossed in the novel that she didn't realize the time passing. "Hey," comes Mark's voice from across the library. She looks up, blinking a few times at the change from the paper pages to life. Mark walks towards her, "Aren't you supposed to be at the dress fitting or something?" Brooke looks down at her watch, and gasps as she realized that she was half an hour late. "Oh, shit!" she exclaimed as she stood up, dropping the novel on the seat. She brushes past Mark in a hurry, but he catches her arm before she can get too far, pulling her back to him. "Hold on, not so fast," he says. "Don't think you can get away so easily." Brooke smiles and her eyebrow lifts, "Really, is that so?" Mark nods, bringing his lips to hers for a long, lingering minute. Using all her willpower, she pulls back from him. "I gotta go. You don't want me to come down that aisle in an unflattering dress now, do you?" He laughs, "I guess not." Brooke kisses his lips once more before rushing toward the door.

Driving as sanely as she can, considering how late she was, Brooke arrived at the dress shop in one piece. She breathes a sigh of relief as she steps into the shop, and see's her cousin, Joanie, and Stephanie, talking with the woman who owns the shop. "'Bout time, girl!" Stephanie calls out as Brooke comes up to the little group. "Don't be hard on her," Joanie replies with a grin. "I bet I know what made her late." They crack into laughter. Brooke smiles at the joke. "Despite your little insinuations, nothing of the sort happened to keep me," she tells them. "I lost track of time..." Stephanie and Joanie nod in a 'yeah, right' manner. "It's true!" The dressmaker clears her throat. "Ladies, if you're ready, we can start," she says, and leads the girls toward the dressing room area.

The dresses are beautiful, and Brooke's only needed to be taken in around the waists. She had chosen her dress about a month ago after a long bout of searching. She'd been waiting to get it fitted incase she'd managed to shed any pounds, which didn't happen due to all the stress. Brooke was enjoying having her family in town, along with Mark's family as well. All their friend's were in town for this special occasion, and Brooke smiled as she thought of all the support she had in her life. Brooke had asked Kevin two weeks ago to walk her down the aisle, he teared up and happily agreed. He'd always been a father figure to Brooke, and she would never have, nor want, anyone else to give her away. Brooke's maid of honor was Stephanie, and the rest of her bridal party consisted of her cousin Joanie, and her childhood friend's Lisa and Sarah. Mark had all four of his brother's in his wedding party, which Brooke loved the idea of. She was happy to see how close he was with his family, and was glad that they were all here to support him. Brooke put the final touches on her wedding dress, and picked up the bride's maids dresses as well. "This is it," Brooke said, as she looked at herself in the mirror. Stephanie teared up as she gazed at her friend, absolutely glowing in her dress. "You look amazing..." was all she could manage to say, and Joanie could only nod in agreement.

* * *

"Are we there yet?" Brooke asked for the millionth time since Stephanie and Joanie put her in a car with a blindfold over her eyes. The group had just finished the ceremony rehearsal dinner at the Statler Hotel, and the two girls had whisked Brooke away before anyone could protest. As soon as they had Brooke in their hands, a blindfold had gone over her head. She sat squished between the two, wondering what they had planned. "No, so stop asking!" Stephanie replies, laughing. "Just enjoy the ride."

"It's kinda hard to enjoy the ride when I have no idea what's going on," Brooke returns. "It doesn't help when I might get car sickness from this." Joanie begins to laugh. "Please, Brooke!" she says. "You've been through so much worse than this. Hell, we're making you wear a white puffy gown tomorrow, and you're living with that." The car stops with a sudden jolt. "We're here!" Stephanie calls out, then opens the door to get out. She pulls Brooke out gently by the arm, and Joanie follows behind them. After going through a few doors, the blindfold is taken off of Brooke's face, and she blinks at the sudden light. Once her eyes refocus, she realized she was in a hotel suite. All of the WWE Diva's were gathered around, a few of Brooke's friends, and some of Mark's female family members. "Happy Bachelorette Party!" everyone shouts. "You guys!" Brooke says, surprised. She turns and hugs Stephanie and Joanie. "I can't believe you did this!"

"What else would we do the night before the wedding?" Brooke's friend Lisa states with a grin. Sarah nods, and replies, "And trust me, the guys are doing the same thing with Mark." Brooke could only smile as they begin to pile gifts on the center table. "You all are too generous," she tells them, and they just laugh. A few hours later, after unwrapping all the lingerie and other gifts, playing a few games, drinking champagne and eating a great meal, a knock comes to the door. "I'll get it!" Joanie says, beaming as she walks toward the door.

She returns with a guy dressed in a full wolf costume, "Is there a Brooke Fox here?" Brooke hears him ask through the head piece as he places a boom box on the table, turning it on. "Yeah, that's me," brooke replies, giving Joanie a questioning look. The wolf guy struts towards her, "I'm here to tell you what a hoooowl you are, baby," he says, then removes the wolf head to reveal a head of short, blonde hair, and ice blue eyes. Before Brooke could protest, the wolf costume is off, and the guy is dancing around the room in a seductive stripper manner, using his lean body to his advantage.

Laughing since she knew this would happen, Brooke grabs Stephanie's arm, "Just wait till I get to play around with your Bachelorette party!" Stephanie chuckles, "Oh God, no!" she returns, watching the dancer move toward one of Mark's cousins. "You aren't touching my party!" Brooke nods and grins, "Just you wait!" she says. The guy removes his tight shirt, and starts toward his pants; Brooke can't remember is there has ever been a time where she was more repulsed. "Oh, come on. The shirt's enough for me." The other women just smile. "Yeah, right," one of them says. "Since when is a half-nude man ever enough?" Laughing with the others, Brooke watches in quiet contempt at the spectacle the man makes of himself as he removes his spandex pants. As he does do so, all Brooke can think is, 'I hope to God that he's wearing something else.' Her thoughts are answered when she sees that he's wearing a black thong. 'It's better than nothing…a lot better, I suppose.'

The guy starts gyrating toward Brooke. "Hey it's your last night as a single woman, how 'bout you and me meet up later on tonight, when I get off work, and go do some…stuff?" he asks in a whisper as he leans toward her. Brooke smirks with a disgusted look on her face, "How 'bout you meet your hand later tonight, because it'll do a whole lot more for you than I ever want to." The guy laughs hesitatingly as the music stops. He then picks up his clothes, dresses, and leaves quickly as his face turns beet red. The other women just stare at Brooke as he leaves. "What?" she asks looking confused. "What was that about?" Lisa asks. "The guy left with a tomato-red face." Brooke laughs, "I know it is my last night as a single woman, but really, do I seem like the type who likes to watch a guy shake his junk in my face? I'd much rather see tits- Stephanie you should know this." Stephanie smirks, "Oh I knew it, that is why I have another suprise for you. Wait here." Stephanie, Joanie, Lisa and Sarah stand up and head towards the bathroom. 'What now?' Brooke asks with a questioning look. Suddenly she hears a knock on the bathroom door, and Mark's cousin, Jenny, stands up and laughs. "Ladies, ladies, ladies. Step right up to witness the sexy, beautiful, and gorgeous bridal party of Brooke Fox!" Suddenly the door opens, and all of the women burst into laughter. The girls had taken some of Brooke's newly aquired lingerie, and were strutting towards Brooke in their underwear. Brooke couldn't help but laugh, "That's what I'm talking about!" She yells as she whips out some singles from her purse, playfully throwing them at her friends.

Stephanie walks over and strattles Brooke's lap, the girls in the hotel room scream and laugh as the bridal party puts on a fake "Strip Tease" for Brooke. Stephanie smiles mischievously. "The night's young. We've got a whole lot more planned for you, missy!" Brooke laughs, and wonders if Mark is having as much fun as she was.


	24. Chapter 24 :: The Final Changes

**Okay, I lied. THIS is the last chapter, not the previous one. Haha. Thank you all sooooo so much for the reviews on this story, I'm sad to see it end- but hopefully you enjoy the big climax! I'm not done here, my next FanFic called "Deep Blue" will be posted some time next week. It is still in the works- and I'm really excited about it. Just as I'm excited to have "Changes" finally finished. Thanks again, and shoot me some reviews with any final thoughts on the story, if you haven't reviewed it I'd LOVE to hear from you. You guys are the best! :) Enjoy.**

Chapter Twenty-Four.

Someone shaking Brooke forces her eyes to open. The change in brightness makes the motion seem blinding, "Brooke, come on," she hears Stephanie's voice call. "Wakey, wakey!" Groaning, Brooke sits up slowly. "It's too early," she mumbled. "I just got to sleep." Stephanie laughs at her, "Early?" she restates. "It's about ten in the morning, and today is the day you've been waiting your entire life for." Forcing herself to stand, Brooke stumbles to the dresser, picking out underwear. "I can't believe how tired I feel," she says to Stephanie. "All that planning does that to you," she reassures her friend. "Joanie and I are gonna be by in half an hour to help you dress and stuff, all right?" Brooke nods, and Stephanie leaves the room. Brooke enters the bathroom as she turns on the hot streams of water, and steps in after stripping. "Man, I think I might fall asleep standing," she grumbles to herself.

Half an hour later, as Stephanie had said, a knock comes to the bathroom door just Brooke began blow drying her hair. "Hey, Brooke!" Joanie calls through the door. "You ready yet?" Brooke sighs, "Almost," she returns, and hurries to put her underwear on. As she steps out into the living room area of the hotel room, Joanie hands Brooke her wedding gown. Brooke smiles and places the dress gingerly on the bed. "Let's get started," Lisa states as the girls begin to get ready. Some of the hairdressers and make-up artists from the WWE agreed to do Brooke, and her wedding party's hair and make-up. For the next hour, the team begins working up Stephanie, Lisa, and Sarah's hair into an up-do of curls. Brooke's hair is down and wavey, parted slightly to the side. They also begin to work on make-up at the same time, and Brooke laughs to herself- she hadn't been pampered like this in a while. Once the hair and make-up was complete, Brooke pulled her gown over herself, then turns to Stephanie so she can tie it up in the back. Brooke glances at herself in the full-length mirror across the room. The dress she's wearing is of a bright white color, with white beads on the bodice in the front and back. The bodice is tight, kind of pushing her chest up a bit, as Stephanie ties it in back, and is strapless. As it goes down, it widens at the ankles with almost a rippling effect to it, and it is poofy at the bottom. "Not too poffy, right?" Brooke asks her friends as she stares at herself once more. Joanie shakes her head, "It's perfect. You look amazing." The Bride's Maid dresses are a soft lavender color, they two are strapless. They are made of silk and go straight down to the girl's feet.

"Go to the mirror and take a better look." Brooke does as Stephanie tells her, making sure not to trip over the long train, and she is astounded at the difference. "Oh my God," Brooke comments softly. "I don't believe I'm doing this."

"You better," Joanie says with a giggle. "We didn't force those wrestlers down there to wear tuxes for nothing."

"Oh, we can't forget the bride thing!" Stephanie exclaims.

"What?" Brooke asks, not really paying attention. The fact that this day has arrived finally hits her as she stares at herself in the mirror. "You know, 'something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue'," Stephanie replies. "Let's see…something old."

"I've got the perfect thing," Brooke states as she goes to her jewelry box. She pull out a silver chain that has a diamond heart, holding a sparkling emerald in the center. Brooke smiles and places it around her neck. "This was my mother's. My grandmother had given it to her years ago, I found it after she passed away and carry it with me in my jewelry box." Brooke stands beside them again.

"Okay," Joanie says, "now, something new." She hands Brooke a small, gift-wrapped box. "I guess now's as a good time as any." Brooke opens the little box to see a pair of heart-shaped diamond earrings. "Joanie, they're beautiful," Brooke tells her, then puts them on. "Thank you so much."

"Now, for something borrowed," Stephanie comments, and hands her a bracelet of small, white pearls. Brooke stares at her in astonishment, trying to say something. These pearls are her great-great-grandmother's, and here, she hands them to Brooke. "Put them on, honey!" Brooke places the bracelet around her wrist. "Thank you, Steph," she finally manages to say. "And lastly, something blue!" Lisa says. Brooke smiles at her friends and lifts up her dress, revealing a blue garter, "Got it covered," she says, then pulls the them all into an embrace. "I'm so thankful you girls are here to help me through this."

"Hey, we're happy too help, Brooke," Lisa comments as they pull apart from each other. "Besides, we knew you'd be a wreck if we didn't." Joanie looks at the clock on the bedside table. "We've got a few minutes before Kevin comes to get us," she states. A sudden knock startles them, "Or maybe not." Joanie opens the door, and Kevin steps in. He beams as he looks the girls over. "Everything's all set downstairs," he tells them. He looks back at Brooke, "You look amazing, sis, are you ready?" Brooke nods, and Kevin holds his arm out for her to take. Taking a deep breath, she places her arm through his, picks up her bouquet of fresh-cut tiger lilies, and they make their way downstairs.

When the group reachs the glass doors, Joanie, Stephanie, Lisa and Sarah each give Brooke a quick hug. "We're gonna be right beside you up there, so you're not really alone," Joanie tells her, then takes Mark's brother, Steve's, arm as they walk out to the path. Lisa and Sarah follow, arm and arm with Josh and Aaron- Mark's two older brothers. Stephanie smiles as she takes Glenn's arm, then pulls the nylon over Brooke's face. "We're with you all the way, sweetie," she states, and they depart as well.

Kevin holds Brooke's arm tighter, and Brooke sqeezes back, smiling up at him. "This is it, kid. Everything's gonna be just fine," he comments softly. Brooke grins, "I know it will." The familiar tune of 'Here Comes the Bride' begins to sift through the air. "Here we go.." Kevin and Brooke walk through the glass doors, and head down the white, flower scattered aisle. As they continue walking, Brooke looks further down and sees Mark gazing back at her. He looks absolutely gorgeous in the tux, and Brooke can't help but smile. His lips curl up into a smile as he sees Brooke, and she cab only smile more.

They reach the end of the path, where Mark and his grooms men stand on one side, and the bride's maids on the other. The priest stands in the middle, dressed in white. Kevin loosens his hold on Brooke's arm, kisses her forehead gently, and places her hand into Mark's. "Who gives this beautiful bride away today?" The priest asks. With tear filled eyes, Kevin smiles, "Her brother, Kevin- and her mother, who can't be with us today, but we feel her here in spirit." Mark and Kevin shake hands before Kevin returns to his seat. Staring into Mark's eyes takes Brooke away from reality, and she doesn't even notice the priest begining the ceremony. The priest interrupts her thoughts when he says, "Do you, Brooke Fox, take this man as your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?" Brooke didn't notice that the ceremony had been going on for a while now, and it's almost near the end. "I do," she replies, looking into Mark's eyes again.

The priest then turns to Mark, asking, "Do you, Mark Calaway, take this woman as your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?" Without breaking his gaze Mark replies, "I do."

"The rings, please," the priest says next. Stephanie hands the priest the two silver wedding bands, and Mark picks up the smaller band. "Place the ring on her left ring finger, and say the words you wish to say." Mark places the ring on Brooke's finger, saying, "With this ring, I take you into my life fully, and like this ring, I promise our lives will be as one for everlasting eternity. I give you my faith, my trust, my honesty, and when we speak, I will be truthful." Brooke smiles, then picks up the larger band, and waits as the priest says, "Place the ring on his left ring finger, and say the words you wish to say.." While sliding the ring onto his finger, Brooke says to him, "With this ring, I take you fully into my life, and will do everything in my power to let our lives go on into eternity together, as one whole, forever and ever. I give you my faith, my trust, my honesty, and when we speak, I promise to be truthful."

"With the power invested in me by the state of Texas, I now pronounce you man and wife on this beautiful first day of summer, June 21st, 2009," the priest says. "Mr. Calaway, you may now kiss your bride." Mark's lips come to Brooke's almost immediately, his arms coming around her back. She places her arms around his neck, enjoying the pressure of his body against hers. The applause reaches their ears a few seconds after it starts, and the two pull apart. Taking Brooke's arm into his, Mark leads her slowly back down the path, and all the way to the tables that are set up for the reception.

The reception is beautiful, and the food…nothing short of magnificent. Brooke was extremely anal about having good foor at the wedding, and in that she was successful. During dessert, Kevin starts a toasting round by standing, and clanking his glass with his spoon to get everyone's attention. "I just want to say a little something to the newlyweds," he says, holding his glass toward them. "You two are quite possibly the only two that are right for each other. Your contrasts make all that you have in common that much more apparent. Mark we may have had our disagreements in the past, but I have to face the facts and realize that if you could put up with my bratty little sister for as long as you have- you are something special." Mark smiles and the room laughs at the little joke. "Brooke, I've always been over protective of you. You are really all I have in this world, and I love you more then words could ever say. Mom can't be here with us tonight, but I know she is looking down on you and is proud as hell. You picked the right one," He then raises his glass higher. "I wish the two of you the best of luck. And God willing you don't get a divorce, because if you did, it'd be the end of us all. Deadman, she's your problem now." Laughter erupts as Kevin sits back down.

Stephanie stands up next, "Brooke, I've known you for as long as I can remember. A day before you just doesn't come to mind in my life- because you are such a huge part of it," Stephanie begins as her voice begins to crack, and tears slowly surface in her eyes. "You are truley the strongest woman who has every walked the face of this planet. After all you've been through, turning your life around from hard roads, being hell bent against anyone of the opposite sex, and over coming your mother's passing. Now, here you sit, nearly three years later after meeting Mark, and do you know what I see? A completely different woman. Mark, you're an amazing man. You are perfect for my best friend. I see how her eyes light up when you walk in the room. You have been nothing but considerate and patient, even while waiting for her to come out of her coma. That is the day I knew you two couldn't live without one another." She smiles as she raises her glass. "Lucky woman, lucky man, congrats. Do well, and please don't kill each other."

Mark's best man, Glenn Jacobs, his "on-T.V brother Kane", stands up next. "I have been around these two from the beginning," Glenn says. "I've been with them through their ups and their downs. From the time they started their friendship, through their break-up, and their reconciliation, and now, we're all sitting here, celebrating their wedding." Glenn smiles down at them. "I've got to say, it took you two long enough! I knew from the beginning that once they got together, they'd be together until one of them decided to croak. Mark, you truly deserve all the happiness in this world, and I think Brooke brings that to you. Now that you've made the union official, I say to you, PLEASE stay together, or I'll never hear the fucking end of it."

Scott Hall stands up next to Kevin, "Please let this last as long as possible, so we can all get out of town before the eruption hits! I love you both, and wish you many years of happiness, love, health, and babies." After everyone was done toasting and dinner was through, it was time for Brooke and Mark to have their first dance. The D.J announced, "Ladies and gentleman, your bride and groom's first dance as a married couple!" Mark's arms are around Brooke's body as soon as they stop in the middle of the crowd. Placing her arms around him, her head rests on his shoulder, and her eyes close in contentment as the song starts.

_From the Heart--Another Level _

I know you've heard these words

A hundred other times before

And you've been hurt

And so, your heart has chose to close the door

Love broke your heart and brought you lies

Look in my eyes

You'll see a love that's deep and true

Tender and strong and all for you

You can trust this love

Honest, that's the honest truth

From the heart,

I'm giving you everything

Everything

From the heart,

I promise you that I'll be there

I'll be there to love you

From the soul,

I'm showing you all I feel

All I feel (yeah)

From the heart

From the heart

I will protect you and respect you

And be all you need

And when you reach for love

You'll only ! need to reach for me

These arms will never let you down

They're staying around

I'll walk with you through every storm

I'll keep you safe, I'll keep you warm

And you'll have no doubt

You're the one I'm living for

From the heart,

I'm giving you everything

Dancing together so slowly to this beautiful song pulls Brooke into a realization that from here on in, things will be different. She opens her eyes, and sighs quietly. "I love you, Mark," she says in a whisper. "I love you, too, baby" he replies, gently pressing his lips against hers. The reception lasts another couple of hours, and Brooke gets up on the balcony with her bouquet of flowers. "Alight I want all the single ladies to the middle of the dance floor!" The DJ says through the microphone as he plays "Beyonce 'Single Ladies'". All the girls yell and run to the middle of the dance floor, as Brooke playfully shakes her bouquet at them from above. "Alright, Brooke is ready! Get your protective pads on boys because this could get ugly!" All the guys laugh as they drink their beers and watch the women stare intensely at Brooke, awaiting her throw. "Five, four, three, two, one, toss it!" Brooke turns around and throws the bouquet over her head towards a sea of raging females, scrambling for it. Who should catch it but Stephanie. She jumps in excitement, and the silly grin on her face tells Brooke it might not be long before we're all at another wedding.

Brooke comes down from the balcony, and sits on a chair placed in the middle of the dance floor. Mark was about to get the garter from under Brooke's dress to throw for the guys, and he was feeling the pressure from Kevin's eyes. "Alright, Mark. A few words of advice before you do this," the DJ says over the microphone. "This will probably be the first, only, and last time- you will get to go up your wife's dress, with her closest family members in the room. So make it last, my friend, make it last!" The DJ then plays the song 'I Touch Myself', and the crowd bursts into laughter. Mark shakes his head and slowly goes up Brooke's dress, grabbing the garter with his teeth and slowly sliding it down and off her leg. The crowd cheers as he does so, and Kevin shakes his head and chuckles, "Once in a lifetime, Calaway!"

* * *

Two weeks after the wedding, Mark and Brooke are back on the road for Mark's final tour with the WWE as The Undertaker. It is bittersweet for everyone involved, but Brooke was greedy and couldn't wait to have him for herself. Mark was excited himself. Whether he liked it or not, he was getting older and his body was starting to react to all the punishment it took. The two had just returned from their honeymoon in the Bahamas, and were chatting with a bunch of the wrestlers backstage before the show. Vince walks up and introduces a new wrestler by the name of Randy Orton, to the group. They all shake his hand and get to small talk.

"It's too bad, Orton. You won't have much time to work with this amazing mother fucker." Kevin says. Kevin was brought to the WWE not long after the wedding, and couldn't have been happier to get out of WCW while he could. Brooke punches Kevin's arm, "Language!" she says. Kevin raises an eyebrow, "Excuse me, mom? Like you haven't cussed me to hell in the past?" Mark laughs, "Okay kids, keep it up and you're both going to your room." Brooke chuckles, "Come to think of it, you are going to need to use those parenting skills one day in the future." Brooke rubs her hand on her still flat stomach, "Might as well tell you and the whole group, I'm pregnant!" Mark's eyes light up and he smiles the biggest smile Brooke has ever seen. "Really?" Mark asks with excitement in his voice. Brooke nods, grinning.

Kevin puts his arms up in the air, "I'm going to be in uncle, hell yes!" Kevin picks up his sister in a tight embrace and twirls her around as everyone gathers around them and gives the couple their congrats. Randy stands aside with Scott, "Wow, are things always this insane?"

Scott laughs and pats Randy's shoulder, "Oh, you stick around long enough my friend- and you'll see how crazy it **_really_** gets."

**The End.**


End file.
